


Sunglasses, Screwdrivers & Swords

by DAsObiQuiet



Series: 4 Of A Kind [1]
Category: Bourne Ultimatum (2007), Doctor Who (2005), Rurouni Kenshin
Genre: Crossover, F/M, Gen
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2014-02-04
Updated: 2014-05-06
Packaged: 2018-01-11 02:56:07
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 9
Words: 35,793
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/1167812
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/DAsObiQuiet/pseuds/DAsObiQuiet
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Miraculous escapes never get easier, no matter how often he does it. Trying to save the strange, convinced-he's-the-one-saving-lives English man who popped up makes it immensely harder...and that's BEFORE they end up in Meji Japan.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. The Almost Invisible Man

Fear had long since abandoned the dark-haired man, along with most of his other emotions. The only thing that seemed to really get to him these days was his will to live, a firm determination and (as the situation seemed to be determined to prove at the moment) annoyance.

"Seriously, how many times can they come after me?!" the man grumbled to himself when he spotted the car parked in front of his newest apartment. He hadn't even been here a month. Couldn't they just leave him in peace?

He shook his head as he ducked down an alley way casually. Of course they couldn't. As far as he knew, Blackbriar had been shut down just like Treadstone had been. Of course, that right there said it all. Did they want him and his skills for some other top secret program that had sprung up in Blackbriar's stead? Did they want to arrest him? Or did they want to thank him and exonerate him? Somehow he doubted that last one, as absolutely blissful as it would be to not have to worry about running anymore.

_'It's my own fault,'_ he thought, grabbing onto a fire escape and hefting himself up onto it. ' _I was the one that stayed in America. Should have gone down to Mexico_.' He'd actually been planning on heading down to South America after the whole Blackbriar fiasco had calmed down and been out of the public eye for a few months. If he took the legal way, it would draw less attention to him. Well, it looked like he'd just have to get down there the hard way now.

Warily, he looked around, peaking over the lip of the roof. The guards they had all over the apartment building and snipers (well, definitely no exoneration) opposite said building weren't difficult to spot, and he knew they'd already gone through his apartment. He didn't even sigh at the loss, although he did manage a frown. It looked like he'd just have to cut his losses, grab the cash he stashed in the local bank and head for the boarder.

The tennis shoes he wore for his daily run squeaked against the old metal as he quickly dropped back to the alley way. It didn't look like anyone had spotted him so far.

Retaking his casual aire, he turned and began to walk lightly in the direction opposite of his house. Too bad the alley had been blocked on the opposite end. It would be a lot easier to remain unseen from the next street over. As soon as he had turned the nearest corner, he broke into a fast jog. Running would normally draw attention to him, but seeing as he was dressed as a jogger, he was perfectly happy to have an excuse to hide in plain sight.

Across from the bank, he stopped at an Old Navy and bought some khakis, a dress shirt and a jacket before heading over to the gas station on the corner to wash away the worst of the sweat and change clothes. Once he was somewhat cleaned up, he tossed his work-out clothes in the garbage bin and headed across the street.

It didn't take him long to empty the deposit box under the name Brian Fox, but as he exited and looked towards the door, four men walked through it. He knew them immediately for the agents they were, despite their average clothes.

Cursing his luck (he figured they had to be watching the bank to act this quickly), he turned towards the bathrooms and stair cases.

He knew they'd spotted him, so as soon as the door closed, he shot up the stairs, taking them two at a time. Of course, this would have to happen after he'd been running all morning. The doors below him burst open and several pairs of feet began pounding up the stairs after him, which only gave him the motivation to move faster.

This particular bank branch only had four floors. Depending on the situation, that could be extremely helpful, or his death sentence. In this case, he didn't find himself too pleased as there were other buildings around that had a few more stories on them, which only gave more optimal sniping positions. However, it was the only national bank within a half-an-hour running distance of his apartment that had been built small enough that he could climb down the outside fairly quickly if necessary. He seemed to do that a lot while on the run. Of course, he hoped it didn't come to that.

As of right now, his main goal was the elevator shaft. If he could gain access before they caught up, he could sneak down and out under their noses.

On the fourth floor, he grabbed the handle of the door leading into the hallway, and froze. Through the glass, he could see several men climbing off of the elevator, all of which had ear pieces. He swore. Alright then, Plan B.

Thankfully, he'd had the foresight to stash a bag in the deposit box, not a suitcase. He shrugged the strap over his head as he came to the door on the roof. It had been locked with a padlock. Without missing a beat, he reached in the sack and pulled out a pair of very large cutters, having known that if he needed to resort to Plan B they would be necessary.

Once outside, he slammed the metal door shut and jammed the pliers under them. That should buy him a few seconds at least.

That accomplished, he did a quick look around. No one had shot at him yet, which meant they had followed him to the bank instead of actually watching it. So they had to have seen him earlier at the apartment. As annoyed as he was that he hadn't realized he was being followed (rare for him-the guys they had following him had to be _good_ ), this was still a positive development.

His shoes thudded hollowly against the hard rooftop as he ran to the edge and peered over. The streets below weren't exactly crowded, but it would be better than standing out alone.

Behind him, the door thudded loudly, as if someone (or several someones) had run into it. They'd caught up, but couldn't seem to get through the door. It only took him a moment to hop over the railing surrounding the roof. He hadn't gotten a chance to even turn around and begin his decent when a hand clasped his arm. No one had been on the roof when he'd scouted it earlier, so the hand popping out of nowhere accomplished something that almost never happened: It startled him.

"What the-" he began as his shoe slipped. With a cry, he felt himself fall, and grasped onto the railing and the hand that had grabbed him out of pure instinct.

"You don't have to do this," the man who grabbed his arm said. He now held onto both of Brian's arms, trying to keep him from falling. The newcomer wore a long, brown coat on over a dark brown, pin-striped suit, and he had short, dark hair. He also sported what sounded like a English accent. "Come back up, I can help," he spoke calmly but urgently.

"Who are you?!" Brian shot out, thankful that he'd finally been able to get his footing again. He glanced at the man in frustration. How could he have been so utterly _rookie_ as to miss someone that conspicuous on the roof? Someone who seemed to have a hero complex none the less. "I wasn't going to jump!"

The man paused, looking surprised. "You weren't?"

"No!" Brian growled. "Now let me go!"

"Um, it's not really a good idea to-"

A particularly loud thud from the door (facing away from them as that's why he'd chosen this side of the building) drew the man's attention before he could finish his sentence.

"Are they chasing you?" he asked, turning back to look at Brian with a mix of confusion, surprise and wariness underlined with just a touch of mistrust. "You didn't rob the bank, did you?"

Brian couldn't help but feel offended. What kind of an idiot would rob a bank and then head to the roof, of all places? Still, he needed to get rid of this 'Good Samaritan' asap, hopefully without hurting him.

"So what if I did?" he asked, adding a slight menace to his words. With any luck, the guy would think of him as a street punk (despite his current clothes), possibly packing heat, and let him go. "Gonna shoot whoever gets in my way!"

The man didn't move. Instead, he seemed to pause and contemplate Brian.

"You have more than money in that bag, and pulling off a heist from the safety deposit box in broad daylight would be nearly impossible...although I bet you could do it."

Something about the man's attitude wasn't right. This guy either had a great deal of experience or some formal training if he could see something like that. "You don't think I did?" he asked, again adding the slightest threat, but he did so halfheartedly as he had a feeling he wouldn't be able to fool this guy.

The man looked down his nose at Brian, as if studying something utterly fascinating. "No, I don't think you did."

"You don't want to get caught up in this," Brian said, dropping the gangster-like act altogether. "So you're going to let me go." With that, he pushed off of the roof with his legs, vaulting back over the railing, surprising the man enough to let him go and stumble backwards. He then turned back to the metal barrier lining the roof and launched himself over it a third time, only to hear a bullet hit the wall right next to his feet. He immediately dove back onto the roof, cursing. They'd either gotten a really lousy sniper set up, or backup had arrived and they'd started shooting at him from the street.

"So if you didn't rob the bank, why are they shooting at you?" the Englishman asked as he too dropped to the roof and covered his head.

"Long story," Brian growled, hearing the next thump from the door. He ducked again as another bullet flew over his head.

"This is why I hate coming to America," the man grumbled. The American ignored him and looked around the roof, calculating. If he approached any other side of the building, he would be in view of either the men behind the door leading onto the roof or whoever was shooting at him from below. Currently his best bet would be to run to the opposite side and just chance that the door couldn't be shot through-

"Seriously," the Englishman said. "What did you do?"

"Nothing!" Brian muttered absently. He began to crawl towards the opposite railing. Once he was gone they probably wouldn't touch the bystander, so he ignored the guy and kept his eyes fixed on his destination. Just a few more inches before he could get up and run without the person below seeing him. He only had a few seconds before the roof door broke, he could tell from the thumping and progressively more obvious rattling. Actually he was surprised (and a touch grateful) that it had held so far.

"Do you mean that?"

"Huh?" he felt something grab his leg, and turned his attention to the other man for a moment.

"You really didn't do anything?"

"Like I said," Brian turned his attention back to the railing across the roof, "long story." With that, he kicked out of the guy's grasp and shot forward towards the opposite side of the roof.

"What are you doing?!" The man yelped. "You'll get yourself kill-"

He wasn't fast enough. Brian had no sooner taken his first step than the door broke and the four men he'd seen earlier poured out, turning their guns on him. He had to change his direction then. Sliding to a stop, he pulled out his own gun and shot at their feet, causing them to all duck for cover as he scrambled back to the man. The last thing he needed was for an innocent bystander to get hurt in all of this. Not only would it just make the whole situation more tense and altogether worse, _she_ wouldn't have wanted that.

He grabbed the man's arm and shoved him behind...something. It took him a moment to realize that he hadn't really seen this 'something' before. That set off warning bells in his head. He could shrug off overlooking something or someone once because of a panic, but with his training, missing two different, very large objects approached the boarders of 'unheard of'. Blinking in confusion, he looked up at the object they'd taken refuge behind and saw what looked like a large, blue telephone booth that said "police box" on it.

"You could have dislocated my arm!" the man whined.

Brian turned his attention back to him. "Do you _want_ to get shot?!"

The man cocked his head for a moment. "So you saved me?"

The American ignored him again, instead choosing to lean around the blue box and fire off a few shots.

"You're deliberately missing them," the man muttered, startling Brian for the second time that day. That really unnerved him. Brian didn't _get_ startled. Ever. The man had stood up and now leaned over Brian's head, looking around the side of the blue box.

Brian reached up and grabbed the front of his jacket, yanking the Englishman down next to him.

"Stay here or get killed," he warned.

"Oh, you're a worry wart," the man said calmly as he ignored Jason's warning completely and stood up again as he took a key out of his pocket.

"Get down!" Brian hissed. Seriously, the guy had to have mental problems to-

The door to the booth suddenly fell open, causing him to fall backwards now that he lacked support.

"What the-" he started again, then stopped. His eyes grew wide. From the outside, the booth hadn't been more than four square feet at most, but he now stared at a cavern at least six times that size. "What...the..."

"You like to say that a lot, don't you?" the man looked down at him.

Brian went through every single training scenario, situation and rumor he'd ever heard, and nothing came to mind that fit what he was seeing now. For the first time in his life, he'd stumbled across something that made no logical sense at all whatsoever. It bordered on Magic...

But Magic didn't exist! He wasn't sure of many things in his life, but that was one of them.

Unable to comprehend the sight, he shot to his feet and whirled around, backing away from the impossible box.

"You...may not want to do that," the man said just as bullets started whizzing by. His body reacted instantly, years of training and conditioning causing him to duck and rush back into the impossible box, despite his shock. As soon as he'd cleared the doors, the man closed them. "Alright then!" he grinned and ran past Brian and up a ramp to the large, spherical console in the center of the room.

Despite the fact that Brian could almost instantly tell exactly where weapons, plans and personal could be hidden in the room, he still couldn't seem to describe it. The only thing that came close was something resembling the concave of a spaceship, with warm-colored light-bulbs illuminating every crack and cranny in the room. Thick, coral-like columns supported the ceiling, branching off at seemingly random places while a ramp from the doorway lead up to a raised, metal-mesh floor covering what looked like storage compartments and various mechanical items. For the first time in a very long time he didn't even want to guess at what else lay hidden below the Englishman's feet. Any number of items could fit.

"This is impossible," Brian muttered, running a hand through his short hair. "I finally lost it..."

"It's just bigger on the inside," the man stopped pounding the helter-skelter console with a hammer and looked over at Brian as if it were the most natural thing on the planet.

"What is this?" the American insisted heatedly. "Is this some sort of trick?"

"No trick. It's just the TARDIS."

"How?" It had to be a trick or a trap of some sort. There just wasn't any other logical explanation.

"How what?"

"How is this thing not a trick!?"

"Well," the man put his hands in his pockets and rocked on his feet before a shutter ran through the room causing both of them to stumble and grab at the nearest stable object. "That! That's how it works! The TARDIS uses a multi-point cross-dimensional flow system to essentially switch out pockets of space-time within a relatively locked structure – kind of like a Rubix Cube shoved into a much smaller box."

He followed, that...really he did. That didn't mean he understood the implications. So Brian did the only thing he felt he could do at the moment. He reached into his waist and drew his gun.

"Oh, don't do that," the man said, nose crinkling in disgust and annoyance. For a moment, Brian wondered how he pulled off the whining tone while managing to still sound as if he knew he were superior in some way.

Brian continued to point the gun at the man's head. He'd figure something out about his pursuers, but first he had to get away from this illusion. Then something occurred to him: maybe this was part of the chase; an elaborate (and extremely well executed) trap. He felt his jaw tighten.

"They shut down Blackbriar and Treadstone. So what program took their places this time?"

He had to admit, the man had a very convincing confused expression.

"That sounds ominous," he said, looking completely unfazed, even with the weapon directed at his head.

"I told you guys to leave me alone!" Brian insisted, backing towards the door. "Can't you just leave me in peace?!"

"You know, I don't really like answering questions with a gun pointed at me. Can you put it away?"

Brian didn't respond. Instead, he reached behind him and found the handle to the doors. The moment he opened it, he'd have to run for the edge and take his chances with the shooters from the ground, but for some reason that scared him a lot less than this guy and his illusion.

"You'll never get me again," he said. "I won't kill for you or anyone else!"

The man raised an eyebrow. "That's good. Get rid of that," he nodded to the weapon, "and I'll bet it'll be a lot easier."

With a growl, Brian threw the door open, turned and raced outside, expecting to dodge bullets. Instead of the gray roof, though, and to his utter shock, he found himself in an open field with wild grasses and flowers growing everywhere.

Now utterly flabbergasted, he stopped, dropping the hand holding the gun to his side. Around that point is where his mind shut down, refusing to work. There was just no logical explanation for this. None at all.

"TARDIS stands for Time And Relative Dimension In Space. It's a spaceship." Brian didn't answer, instead choosing to continue to stare at the field in utter bafflement. So the man continued. "It's also a time machine. This is Japan, mid-1800's...I think. The country just ended their civil war. Well, that's what we'd call it. An uprising or rebellion really. Now they live in an era of relative peace."

"Why would you bring me here?" Brian finally managed to mutter. "And who are you?"

The man pursed his lips, managing to look nonchalant but mischievous and curious at the same time. "Me? I'm the Doctor. Why here? So you can tell me exactly why they were chasing you without having to worry about dealing with loud, annoying bullets."

"I won't give you any information."

"About secret government programs called 'Blackbriar' and 'Treadstone'? Black Ops or undercover groups, right?"

Brian turned and raised the gun at the Englishman's head again. The man's eyebrows furrowed and he rocked back on his heels, his hands in his pockets once again, looking thoroughly disgusted now. "No, don't...not again! Seriously, put that thing down!"

"No one knows about those without being apart of them."

"Except you." Brian didn't answer. "That's just it, isn't it. You got tired of killing, so you left. That's why they were chasing you, wasn't it?"

"How do you know that?!" Brian demanded, squashing down on the panic he felt begin to rise inside of his gut. He hated that. Trained assassins didn't panic.

"I've seen it before," he said slowly with a voice suddenly full of sadness. "Hundreds of times to hundreds of people and dozens of races."

"So you're an alien too?"

"Yup."

"And you just abducted me." He said it as more of a statement than a question.

The Doctor smiled sheepishly. "Yeah, I guess I did. Well this will be a new experience for you. I don't do the weird probe things or tests if that's what you're worried about. Do you want me to take you back?"

Brian paused for a moment and really thought about it. He had no idea what was going on, but his instincts told him that he was safer here he had been on at the bank, no matter how much it played with his mind. He knew he shouldn't trust the man as he had far too little information concerning his current predicament to draw any real conclusions, and he would proceed with caution, but there was something about the man and his nonchalant attitude... Brian didn't know what, but it was something, so he lowered his gun and holstered it slowly. When he spoke again, his tone seemed slightly dazed.

"Hallucination or not, it's better than that roof."

For the first time since Brian had met him, the alien smiled a bright, brilliant smile that spoke volumes of his personality. "Brilliant." The American couldn't understand it, but he felt for the first time in his life that he _could_ trust a complete stranger. Well, not counting her...

He shook the thought from his head and turned to look around the field again.

"Why Japan?"

The Doctor shrugged. "Felt like it. It's a short jump, so it makes for a fast escape."

"Why did you help me?"

"Oi," the brown-haired man stopped him. "Why are you asking all the questions. Don't I get one?" Brian raised his eyebrow, but remained silent.

"What's you're name?" the Doctor asked as he walked up to Brian, holding out his hand and smiling again.

"Brian Fox."

"I meant your real name," the Doctor gave him a pointed look.

Brian snorted. "I don't deserve a real name."

"Oi," the Alien frowned in disapproval.

The American resisted the urge to roll his eyes. "Right now, I don't have a name. I used to be David Webb when I was a captain in the Army, but when I became an assassin, I took the name Jason Bourne."


	2. One Meiji

"Alright then, David," the Doctor said, turning around and focusing on his blue box.

"Don't call me that."

The alien paused and looked back at the other man. "Why not?"

"I stopped being David Webb a long time ago."

"Oh come on," he rolled his eyes.

"No," the American insisted.

The Doctor backed off, although he didn't look too happy about it. "What should I call you then? Not Jason."

He shook his head in agreement. "I'm no longer Jason Bourne."

"Well I've got to call you _something,_ " the Doctor insisted. "I can't just call you _human_. And not a fake name like 'Brian' either."

"Why?" 'Brian' shot a dry gaze at the alien.

"Because it doesn't fit you for one. You don't look like a Brian," the Doctor glanced over as if scrutinizing the other man.

It was the American's turn to roll his eyes. "Why do you have to call me anything. You're just going to leave me here, aren't you?"

The Doctor paused. "Leave you here? Not with that thing," he nodded to the gun now hidden by the Old Navy jacket.

Confusion crossed the other man's face, and he opened his mouth to say something when he felt a twinge on his senses. Someone was watching them. Immediately he went on guard, although few people would have realized judging by the subtle tensing of his body. The Doctor, it seemed, was one of those few.

"What?" the alien looked around the sunlit field, "What's wrong?"

The assassin shot him a warning look and held up his fingers as subtly as he could in a gesture for The Doctor to be quiet. "Someone's there," he whispered.

"Someone?" Honestly did the guy _not_ know how to be quiet? "Who?"

"Not friendly."

"How do you know?" The American ignored him and faster than most people could follow, he'd drawn his gun. "Oh no you don't, not while you're my responsibility," the Doctor growled, reaching a hand out to stop him. The ex-assassin avoided the move easily but kept his gun pointed down and away from them.

"Put that away!"

'Brian' shook his head. The alien glowered at him but instead of reprimanding him The Doctor turned his attention back to the field around them.

"Oi!" he called out. "We know you're there. May as well come out!"

Jason had to stamp down on his frustration and instead poured more effort into searching their surroundings. Not too far away, a lone tree grew near a small stream. Both men had seen it, but neither one had noticed the slight figure behind it. They only saw the person when he melted away from the small shadow the tree cast and stepped into the late morning sunlight.

Instantly, both men wondered how they'd missed him. It was a young teen of obvious Japanese heritage, but the most striking bright, copper hair glinting above the oriental features. Along his left cheek, a cross-shaped scar contrasted sharply with the boy's pale skin. However, it was the harsh, blue-violet eyes that drew the American's attention. He knew those eyes. They stared back at him in the mirror every morning. Different color, same experience.

If the kid wasn't assassin, he'd eat his gun...barrel first.

"So even the peace here comes with a price," he muttered.

The Doctor shot a glance at him, but directed his next questions at the boy. "Hello, how are you?" he said calmly, raising his hands in a placating manner.

The boy didn't move, although he managed to look completely skeptical. "Are you the cause of the problems the villagers speak of?"

The alien looked slightly taken aback. "What problems?"

The boy eyed them warily, but apparently decided to humor them. "Strange figures have been seen in the local fields at night. People have disappeared, some of them children. The crops wither without reason."

The Doctor looked around, scratching his head and slipping the unused hand in his pocket. He seemed to be looking for something, and his movements caused his coat to swirl with the motion. "No," he said, although neither of the other two men could figure whether he was speaking to them or to himself until he continued a few seconds later, "we didn't cause that."

The boy didn't look convinced.

"By the way," the alien turned around. "What's your name?"

To the kid's credit, he didn't seem at all derailed by the Doctor's sudden question, although he did look more wary. "Kenshin," he said slowly. "Himura Kenshin."

"Well then, Kenshin, how about we go take a look at those fields together." Both assassins turned and stared at him incredulously. "What?"

"What about me?" Brian asked.

The Doctor shrugged. "You can come too." Then he glanced at Kenshin and pointed to a nearby knoll, "This way, right?"

Kenshin stared after him, looking slightly confused, but regained what little composure he'd lost quickly and began to make his way through the wild plants that grew over the fields after the Doctor. He didn't look very happy.

Brian stared after them for a few seconds before hurrying to catch up. "Hey, wait a second," he said.

"I know," the Doctor turned around with a smile, walking backwards while facing them, his hands still in his pockets. "You need a name. How about Mos-drashy-tony-tan-morenold-acheen-goldil-den?" Again, both of the humans stopped and stared at the alien like he'd just sprouted wings. "What?" he asked again, as if something that ridiculous should be common place, "it's a good name."

Kenshin blinked uncertainly and shot a look at his fellow human before continuing to follow the Doctor.

"I know! Wrynisimus! It's shorter, easier for humans to remember."

"Are these names from your country?" Kenshin asked before his temporary counterpart could say anything.

The Doctor seemed to contemplate that for a moment, then nodded. "You could say that."

The American shot a look over at the suspicious kid before turning most of his attention back to the Doctor and picked a random name. "Call me Matt then."

The Doctor pursed his lips for several seconds before shaking his head. "Nah, you don't look like a Matt."

For some reason, that really ticked the former assassin off. "Just call me Jason then," he growled, frustration lacing his voice.

The alien stopped. "No."

"Why not?"

The Doctor took a step towards him. "You're not a killer," he said, looking far more serious than the American had ever seen him. "Not anymore. You said so yourself."

Jason noticed how Kenshin froze at that and whipped his head to look over at them with an unreadable expression.

"I'm not going to be called some alien name either," he said, filing the kid's reaction away for later inspection.

The Doctor shot an amused smile at the American, who felt his frustration level rise another notch. "Then how about Alonzo?" Jason sighed, deciding it really wasn't worth it and walked past him, coming up over the rise of the hill. "Oh come on," the Doctor persisted. "It's a perfect name! You really should..."

He faded off as the sight over the next hill came into view. A large, well-kept if modest field with varying crops stretched before them. Below that as well as to the sides, rice fields full of water had also been cut into the side of the hill. However, instead of the beautiful green that should have been present in both instances, large circles of dead plants randomly pocketed the landscape. The entire rice field seemed to have been pockmarked with blight. The plants barely rose above the water, sickly and yellow as they floated weakly in the stagnant liquid.

"Hello," the Doctor muttered, jumping the 3 foot cliff above the first field and kneeling down to examine one of the dead plants. After a moment, he took out some glasses and placed them on his nose, then pulled the plant out of the ground for a closer inspection.

A withered husk of what must have been a root-like vegetable came up in his hands. Kenshin landed softly beside him, watching as the alien pulled out a small, thin object and began to run it over the plant. Jason remained on the hilltop. Something about this bothered him, nagging at the back of his mind. He didn't get the feeling very often, and usually when he did, he'd missed something important.

"It is not a blight," Kenshin said tersely. The kid didn't talk much, Jason noted, not that he'd really expected otherwise.

The Doctor glanced up at the boy, curiosity coloring his otherwise puzzled expression. "Did the villagers tell you that?"

The red head's own expression fell to somewhat annoyed. "My parents were farmers, and I have raised crops myself."

Somehow, Jason didn't doubt the validity of the kid's statement. Still, the kid was no farmer. Not with the way he moved. Probably a cover up for his "real" job?

"How do you know?" he couldn't help but ask. If the kid knew his stuff, may as well get the information he needed. It wasn't like Jason had ever raised a garden before.

Kenshin glanced up at him out of the corner of his eye. "A blight weakens the fibers of the plant. Harmful insects even more so." He held out his hand, silently asking for the doctor to hand the root to him. He did so, and Kenshin held it up for Jason to see. " The plants in these crops are still too strong for it to be a sickness," he yanked on both ends of the vegetable, hard. It didn't tear or even stretch. "This is not a blight."

"No, it isn't," the Doctor agreed, standing up and brushing his pants off. "It's more like the very life force is being sucked out of them. But why these plants? Why not the trees," he gestured to the sparse forest visible on the other side of the rice field. "Or the wild flowers and grasses in the field we just came from. Why here?"

Kenshin held out the withered thing to the Doctor, who took it again. "What was that?" he asked, nodding towards the pencil-like object in the other's hand.

The Doctor held it up with a smile. A small, metal tube with various adjustments glinted in the sunlight. "Sonic screwdriver."

Kenshin stared at it for a moment, as did Jason. He couldn't help but feel a little disappointed. A screwdriver? He'd been expecting something...more exiting or at least sci-fi sounding.

"Is it a new invention from the West?" Kenhsin asked, puzzled.

The Doctor nodded again, taking off his glasses and placing both those and the Sonic Screwdriver inside his suit jacket pocket. "Yeah, we'll go with that."

"The circular pattern suggests this isn't natural," Jason pointed out, bringing the conversation back on track.

Kenshin nodded, looking slightly impressed. "I came to the same conclusion, which is why I suspected you."

"And you still do," the Doctor pointed out. Kenshin didn't answer. Jason couldn't blame the kid. After all, they'd just popped up out of nowhere, had strange gadgets he'd never seen before and had been seen in close proximity to the problem.

Even the Doctor seemed to ignore his own observation, choosing instead to look around in the flamboyant way Jason had seen him do several times already. "Another thing, where are the workers? It's almost harvest, isn't it?"

Kenshin shrugged. "They are afraid to come out, which is why I volunteered to help. If the happenings do not stop, the village will not survive the winter."

"Hmm," the alien pondered this for several seconds. Then he turned to Jason and smiled. "Well, Alonzo-"

"Don't call me that either," Jason muttered immediately.

"Why not?" The Doctor looked as if Christmas had just been canceled. Jason shot him a dangerous look. "Alright, you...Homo Sapien." Jason frowned. "Let's go get you a change in clothes."

Jason blinked at that. "Clothes?" he asked.

"Well we can't very well have you running around in that."

xXx

Jason had met just about every classification of human one could imagine. Everyone from politicians through blatant criminals and on to average, every-day Joes. He'd seen the absolute best and worst that human kind could offer, and he had never met anyone as persuasive as The Doctor.

"People actually wear this," he muttered, looking down at the gi and hakama pants the Doctor had fished out of _yet another_ room in his impossible phone booth.

"It is practical," Kenshin muttered from beside him. He had accompanied them back to the Police Box-Tardis thing (probably so as not to let them out of his sight as much as possible), and waited outside with Jason while The Doctor went inside and came back out with his current clothing. Even more frustrating, the man hadn't changed his own clothes.

Afterwords, the Doctor had persuaded Kenshin to show them how to get to the town as he stuck a key into the door of the blue box and locked it. Now they walked in single file down the dirt road, trying to ignore the uncomfortable silence that had settled between them.

It didn't take long for the Doctor to strike up a conversation. "So, Kenshin," he asked, turning around and walking backwards again. "How old are you?"

Kenshin frowned slightly, but answered the question. "Eighteen." Jason felt his eyes go wide. He'd pegged the kid for fourteen, tops.

"Really?" the Doctor seemed just as surprised. "And exactly what year is it?"

"One Meiji," he replied.

"1868," the alien translated to Jason. "You said your parents were farmers, but you dress and act like a low-level Samurai."

"I am a Ruroni," he answered coldly.

"A vagabond wanderer? You fought against the Ishin-shishi, then I assume."

If his voice had been cold before, it grew positively frigid now. "Do not presume."

The Doctor apparently took the hint and changed topics. "Isn't there a ban on swords?" he nodded to the object strapped to Kenshin's side.

The boy sent a warning glare at the alien. Jason glanced between the two, annoyed. The previously awkward atmosphere had grown to something the kid could probably cut through with his weapon.

"Everyone's entitled to their own secrets," the former assassin said, tinging his voice with a warning the Doctor would hopefully pick up on.

The alien didn't look too convinced, but he nodded anyway. "Right."

Kenshin glanced up at Jason, a hint of his gratitude showing through the otherwise emotionless face. They continued to walk in silence for several more minutes before the boy spoke up quietly.

"You...are like me," he pointed out solemnly. "You have seen death, and been the cause of much of it."

"You're too young to have a past like that," Jason muttered, wondering why he suddenly felt so regretful. He glanced down at the slight frame of the boy. He didn't look like a killer at first glance, but he had an air about him that blatantly proclaimed pain to anyone who dared approach. The kid probably didn't even realize he gave off that kind of aura.

Caution had been something drilled into Jason's head since before he'd joined Treadstone. When someone made a mistake in his line of work, they didn't live to tell the tale. You didn't give away any unnecessary information, you always had a back up plan, you never had friends or family ties, and you _never_ relaxed.

He knew how impossible a normal life was for him now, but he would like a peaceful one. Or, at least one where people he cared for didn't die on a regular basis. Hence why assassins weren't supposed to have any ties. Trust was a luxury to him. The kid undoubtedly felt the same way.

"How did you get mixed up in something like that?" He couldn't help but ask.

Kenshin didn't answer for several seconds, and Jason had assumed he'd asked too much and moved on in his train of though when the kid spoke up. "I began learning to fight at the age of eight, just before the War broke out. I was fourteen when I learned of the sufferings others were going through, and wanted to help. Against my master's wishes, I joined the army and became a hitokiri."

"An assassin?" Jason didn't know the word, but he'd already figured out as much.

The boy looked to the side. "A killer. That is all I was"

"You left." It wasn't a question.

"I thought I could stop suffering with my sword. I was wrong. A foolish brat who should have listened to his master."

"What changed?" the Doctor asked, his voice now reverent despite the fact that he never turned around to look at the two trailing behind him.

Kenshin eyed him warily, but continued. "I met...someone."

Instantly Jason knew it was a woman. Something about the kid's tone. He raised an eyebrow but didn't comment.

Kenshin continued. "I stopped killing because..." He faded off, looking wistfully ahead, obviously lost in a memory.

"What happened?" Jason wanted to shoot the alien for that question. Wasn't it obvious? The same thing that happened to...Marie.

He shook his own train of thought out of his head as Kenshin picked up his pace and approached The Doctor with a hard glare. Apparently, he didn't want to talk about it because he pointed ahead. "The village is over the next hill." With that, he turned and began to walk back the way they'd come.

"Oi, where are you going?"

"I promised I would rid the fields of youkai." He didn't say anymore and continued to walk away from them. Fortunately, the Doctor knew when to make a tactical retreat. He continued to watch the kid for a minute before turning back with a sigh.

After that, they traveled in silence.

xXx

Himura Kenshin shook his head as he rounded a bend in the road, retracing the steps he'd already taken twice that day. He'd grown soft. Only months after the war ended, and he'd already let down his guard so easily.

He didn't think those two were responsible for the local phenomena, but he couldn't help but think that they were connected somehow, and he'd allowed them to distract him to a point where he couldn't figure it out. The only conclusion he could draw, was that they had tried to distract him, and it had worked. Perhaps they'd stumbled across his past somehow. He wouldn't be surprised.

Still, he could not find a reason for them to do so. Also, how could they have known he'd be there? He'd only just arrived the night before. Add on the fact that the man, Jason, felt like a hitokiri, even if he didn't move exactly like one. One did not gain that instinctive watchfullness and assessing gaze without such a history. Whether he really had left that business or not as The Doctor claimed remained to be seen.

Also, the other man had seemed rather involved in Japanese history and politics than most foreigners Kenshin had run across. Plus, there was something about that man too. He'd also witnessed death in a very personal way. Despite his fairly immature antics, he seemed wise; old to a point of reaching 'ancient' in knowledge.

The former hitokiri shook his head. How could that be? He didn't look a day over 30. Of course, Kenshin himself barely looked to be a teenager when he'd almost reached adulthood. But still... Not many (and he especially doubted that man in particular) could handle the physical training that had stunted his growth.

They were an enigma, both of them.

He reached the formerly examined fields and began to traipse across them, combing through rows one at a time, looking for something he might have missed. Something was going on here. It wasn't imagined, and he doubted it could be easily explained. Kenshin had never believed in Youkai. Of course, gaining the reputation of being one himself had had a hand in that. He was not about to start believing just because something came along that he couldn't explain immediately.

He'd have to see them face to face before he would even begin to...

Taking a page from the 'ancient' man's book, he'd leaned a little closer as he examined one of the circles of dead plants, and something caught his eye. An indentation in the ground stood out to him in the center of the circle. Actually, now that he looked, directly in the center. Picking his way carefully into the middle, he bent down and examined the indent.

If it had been larger, he would have marked it as a footprint, but he had never seen any human foot leave a print that small. He stared at it for several seconds, memorizing each detail around the area and indent. Then, he touched it gently, carefully feeling for anything.

In the bottom of the indent, a tiny hole had been covered by loose dirt. As Kenshin's fingers brushed over it, the small grains fell away. Looking around, Kenshin walked calmly to the trees lining the clearing and after a few moments, found a long, thin stick.

Slowly, carefully, he pushed the stick down into the hole as soon as he returned to it. Almost immediately, it hit the bottom. Not more than three or four inches below the surface. He wiggled the stick around slightly, feeling for the sides. That's when he realized that the "bottom' of the hole seemed soft...almost squishy.

To confirm this, he pulled out the stick, having made the hole slightly bigger, and stuck his finger down inside. He felt something soft and a little slimy give way under his finger. It felt alive.

Now more intrigued than ever, he stood to get another stick with which to dig. It took him a little while to find one sturdy enough, but he did and trekked back to the area, shoving the stick into the ground to begin working on the little indent. After several minutes, he cleared away the dirt to find what looked like a misshapen, gelatin-like egg. It had several tentacle-like growths spreading out from the center mass and into the dirt around it. Disturbingly, it seemed to pulse slightly.

For some reason Kenshin could not fathom, he suddenly felt almost instinctively drawn to it. The thing was so unlike anything else he had encountered. He'd just reached out to take the strange object when a sudden wooziness washed over him. Surprised, he immediately stood (regretting it as the blood rushed away from his head) and backed away. Taking a calming breath, he analyzed his health, and realized his heart rate had sped up for no apparent reason. In contrast to his mindset only a few moments before, his thoughts seemed to shy away from the strange egg, pushing it back into the corner of his mind where he kept some of his darker memories, and he left it behind, forgotten as he made for the road. The more he walked, though, the less he seemed to be able to remain upright. He must have picked up a sickness...maybe even (dare he think it) cholera.

If that were the case, he had to get back to town and find help. Gulping down his weariness, he continued walking, remaining upright through sheer will.

He'd only just gained the road when blackness started creeping along the edge of his vision. 20 yards later, barely past the field's edge, unconsciousness finally overtook him, and he flopped onto the hardened dirt.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'd like to thank my friend MormongirlBYU for her help with coming up with some of these lines in this chapter! :D


	3. Strange Investigations

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Standard Disclaimer Applies: I don't own.

"Where are we going?" Jason couldn't help but ask as he followed the Doctor through the small, rural town. For the first time in a long time he felt like he was just getting dragged along for a ride and it had started to build on his nerves. Of course, it wasn't like he'd really been in charge when he'd worked for the government, but at least he'd had a good amount of leeway to make his own choices. The fact that this alien had so blatantly taken over the situation still grated on him.  
  
Completely oblivious to Jason's irritation (or outright ignoring it), The Doctor pointed in the direction they'd been walking. "That way."  
  
Jason sent him a glare, which (again) the alien ignored. As soon as they'd entered town, The Doctor had just gone around asking questions. As Jason had very little knowledge of Old Japan and only knew the bare minimum of Japanese that would get him to and from the country, he'd hung back as his companion interrogated the villagers. Then he'd realized he could actually understand the people. That had surprised him. Not only was it one language he hadn't actually learned, but any knowledge he'd had of Japanese would be modern and he would have guessed they'd be speaking in somewhat old-fashioned terms, but when they spoke he heard modern, if formal, English.  
  
 _"I don't speak ancient Japanese," he'd commented after the Doctor had bid a few people farewell, figuring the alien had something to do with it. "How can I understand these people?"_  
  
 _"Oh, that's the TARDIS. She generates a telepathic field that translates the language for you."_  
  
 _Jason had blinked away his mild surprise. "Really?"_  
  
 _At the Doctor's nod he'd frowned. An alien mechanism inside his head bothered him, but he'd also found it rather useful. He could handle 'risky but useful'. "So that's only within a limited range of your ship?"_  
  
 _The Doctor had shrugged, pausing for a minute. "Uh...yeah, basically." Looking far more confident than he sounded. After that, he'd glanced over at Jason and nodded._  
  
 _"Does it allow you to read my mind?"_  
  
 _"Not unless you want me to...and even then, I don't do it often. Humans tend to be so caught up in themselves. It's kind of pointless to get inside heads as you all tend to blather what you're thinking anyway."_  
  
 _Jason's eyes had narrowed slightly at the insult. "So your race is telepathic?"_  
  
 _"You really like to ask questions," the Doctor pointed out, sounding slightly annoyed, but immediately answering the inquiry anyway. "Some were. It's like learning to play an instrument or how to program a computer. It just takes a lot of work and practice."_  
  
 _Jason would have raised an inquisitive eyebrow if he hadn't been trained to school his emotions. "So even humans could learn if they tried enough?"_  
  
 _The Doctor had considered this for a moment, looked Jason up and down, then shook his head. "Nah."_  
  
The assassin had continued to watch him curiously through the rest of their trip throughout the down. Had he said that just as a slur on the human race (he seemed to like to do that) or did had he seen through Jason's poorly veiled question and just responded to avoid having to answer any more? The way the Doctor had said it made him doubt that the alien really believed humans couldn't learn telepathy.  
  
Maybe he could figure out the technology behind the telepathic field learn how to use that to read other people's minds. It would be much easier avoiding everyone who seemed to be on his tail when he got back to his own time.  
  
He'd become so lost in his thoughts, that he only barely noticed the Doctor turn onto a path leading up to an old hut sitting on a hill above a small garden similar to the ones they'd come across before. Unlike those fields, however, these had beautiful green leaves of various shapes in neat rows.  
  
The American did a quick run down of the area out of sheer habit; best possible hiding places for enemies, cover if necessary, distance from the road and trees, etc. Not that he expected anything to happen during this time period this far into a rural area, but he wasn't about to let himself fall out of habit.  
  
"When they come to the door," the Doctor spoke suddenly, glancing over at him. "Bow. It's polite, and around here it's expected."  
  
"Hmm," Jason responded in confirmation.  
  
The Doctor raised an eyebrow before turning back to the door. "The gesture shows trust, among other things. You can trust, can't you?" He said it casually and without menace, but Jason still bristled.  
  
Once again, the alien ignored him and rapped lightly on the side of the house. A woman came to the sliding door, easing it aside gently as she peered through. Immediately, the Doctor bowed deeply. Annoyed, Jason followed suit, standing up as quickly as he could afterward.  
  
"Good day," the Doctor smiled. "I'm the Doctor, this is...er..." he looked over at Jason. "This is Jack Jones." Jason blinked, sending another look at the Doctor, who (once again) ignored him. "We're doing an investigation on the disappearances around here recently."  
  
The woman, a middle-aged housewife, obviously, bowed back. "I see," she said softly, "are you from the government?"  
  
Jason stiffened, but the Doctor took it in stride, whipping out a black booklet and holding it up. "Yes, I am. Mr. Jones here is my assistant." Jason figured he may very well have to insist on being taken back to his own time period as soon as they'd left the hut, unsure of how much more of this man's attitude he could handle before he snapped.  
  
"I see," the woman stood aside. "Please come in."  
  
The Doctor smiled and nodded before reaching down and yanking off his shoes. Just inside the door, a step went up to a wooden floor probably a foot off of the ground. The Doctor nodded at Jason who took off the straw sandals he'd been wearing almost thankfully. They weren't all that comfortable anyway.  
  
He followed the Doctor inside, noting that the woman had knelt down in a very prim manner, bowing deeply so that her forehead touched the floor. The Doctor stood around while she reached to one side of the small hut and took some thin, neatly folded mats from a pile, placing them a little ways away from the fire pit in the center of the room.  
  
Nodding in thanks, the Doctor knelt down on the mat, looking completely at home. Having finished his initial inspection of the house (finding at least three routes out if necessary and keeping his eyes on the windows and door of the single room in the hut), Jason took the second place, mimicking the Doctor in his mannerisms.  
  
"Allow me to get you some tea," she said, scooting over to the pit and pulling out a pot with water in it.  
  
"Thank you," the Doctor smiled. "Now, could you tell me about the disappearance?"  
  
The woman's very presence seemed to fall into despair, although she didn't move more than continuing to fix the tea with an erect back.  
  
"My son," she said softly. "My husband and do not have any other children. We were extremely pleased to have an heir, and raised him in the traditional fashion. Two weeks ago, he didn't come back when I called him for supper. None of the villagers know where he went. If it hadn't been for Mr. Ishikawa's disappearance not two days before, the village would have considered him lost in the forest of his own accord."  
  
The Doctor raised an eyebrow. "Why do you say that? How old was your son?"  
  
"He was in his fourteenth year," she said, her voice softer still. "He wasn't very bright, but he was a hard worker. He helped his father gather firewood to sell in town on many occasions, and he never disobeyed purposefully."  
  
"I see," the brown-haired man said, taking the tea she had set on the floor before him.  
  
Jason had watched her prepare the tea carefully, and didn't like the fact that he did not know the herbs she had placed in the water. She then turned and placed a similar cup before Jason.  
  
"Thank you," he said as politely as he could, bowing to the woman, "but I don't really want-"  
  
The Doctor cut him off, whispering out of the side of his mouth. "It's extremely rude to not accept something from your host." Then he turned and smiled at the surprised housewife.  
  
"I don't really want...to trouble you," Jason tried to amend.  
  
The woman continued to stare at him, as if she'd been slightly offended. The Doctor rolled his eyes. "Please excuse my assistant," he said. "He is from across seas." The woman nodded as if this explained everything. Jason couldn't help a slight scowl touch his lips, but quickly suppressed it and resumed his expressionless mask.  
  
"So, who exactly is Ishikawa-san?" The Doctor resumed, leaning forward after taking a small sip of his tea and setting it before him.  
  
"He is—was a village elder. A very wise man that many people went to for advice. He did not have the strength to walk the length of the village. He could not have left on his own accord, but his family house, of which he unfortunately was the only remaining member, was empty on the morning in question."  
  
"What day was that exactly?" Jason wanted to roll his eyes. Why was he asking the not-so-relevant questions first?  
  
The woman thought for several seconds. "Monday," she said. "Monday morning."  
  
"Which means he disappeared Sunday Night."  
  
The housewife blinked. "Yes," she said slowly, as if to ask why he would point out something so obvious.  
  
"And where is your husband now?"  
  
"Gathering firewood," she replied.  
  
"I see," the Doctor said, then finished his tea and set it on the ground in front of him. "Well, that will be all then. Thank you." With that he bowed and stood up. She bent her head to the ground again as the Doctor and Jason exited the hut, only taking a moment to slip on their shoes.  
  
"Oh," the Doctor waved before he left, "the tea was brilliant."  
  
xXx  
  
Jason waited until they'd come a fair distance from the house before he approached the Doctor.  
  
"What was that?"  
  
The Doctor glanced at him for a moment. "What was what?"  
  
"The strange, random questions, the tea, the black book that convinced her we were government agents, what was it?"  
  
The brown-haired man paused and turned to him, reaching into his coat. Jason tensed out of habit and only relaxed when he saw the little black book the Doctor had showed the woman. "Slightly psychic paper. It shows the person what I want them to see. As for the tea, this isn't one of your jobs where you're in danger of being poisoned or attacked. Following the culture helps put people at ease...usually."  
  
"I get that," Jason said, unimpressed. "That wasn't what I was asking. I'm more concerned that we didn't get as much information as we could have? Why didn't you ask her where she'd last seen her son? Or what he was doing at the time? What did you learn from that?"  
  
"Well," the Doctor said light-heartedly, although it sounded a little strained, "first her son probably had a disability. I'm guessing something similar to autism. Also, knowing when the problems started can help to classify the severity of the situation. I also want to know who has disappeared so as to find a connection, and with you offending her like that, it wasn't a good idea to ask any more questions than necessary.  
  
"Now, before we go back to the TARDIS, I have one more family to talk to."  
  
Jason wanted to groan.  
  
xXx  
  
It took him a minute to catch onto the Doctor's reasoning, but once he did, Jason found he could follow the conversations fairly easily. He managed to not offend the second woman or her husband, both of whom hosted them this time, and as they left Jason couldn't help but see the alien in a new light. Either the man was a genius, or completely insane. Probably a little bit of both.  
  
The missing person in question this time had been a woman, one who had never married and remained living single with her parents well into her thirties (which, the Doctor told Jason, was practically unheard of in this day and age). From what Jason gathered, she'd been a fairly homely woman with at least a slight attitude to match. Of course, he could be wrong, seeing as he had to really read between the lines. These people did not speak ill of anyone deceased or missing. He doubted he'd misread the undertones though.  
  
"What do they all have in common," the Doctor muttered to himself. The couple had given them a few more names to add to the list of people who had disappeared, and as Jason looked at it, he realized there wasn't much of a rhyme or reason to them. Four females and six males, one of which was a baby, had vanished within the last two weeks. "There's got to be some reason those specific people disappeared."  
  
"If it's a government cover up, it could deal with their lineage," Jason suggested.  
  
The Doctor blinked at him incredulously. "Just how long were you in that program?!" he exclaimed. "Not everything's a government coverup!"  
  
Jason didn't answer. After a moment, the Doctor shook his head, reviewing the list he'd jotted down (they'd been awfully impressed with just a ball-point pen). "It can't be lineage. This man's family," he pointed to a name on the list, "has lived in the town for decades if not longer. This woman's family, though, recently moved here from Kyoto to escape the war. So did this boy's family."  
  
The doctor looked up and around again, although this time he didn't seem to be searching for anything. His eyes had glazed over in thought. Then he sniffed. "No, it can't be lineage, unless it goes back generations."  
  
The assassin peered over at the list, running through the names and trying to put the different descriptions he'd heard from the couple together.  
  
"Most of them weren't very well liked," he commented.  
  
The Doctor seemed somewhat startled. "What?"  
  
Jason shrugged and pointed to a name on the list. "The daughter of the couple we just saw didn't have many friends. The way they talked about this man made it sound as if he caused a lot of trouble. The baby hadn't been around long enough and the old man could barely leave his house."  
  
The brown-haired man peered down at the list, his brow furrowed. "You're right," he said. "A lot of them are also very young and very old. Perhaps they're taking people who won't be missed immediately, or people who can't defend themselves."  
  
Jason stopped and stared at his companion. "Who's taking them?" he asked.  
  
The Doctor shrugged. "Has to be someone." He shoved the list in his pocket and took out the withered vegetable he'd uprooted earlier. "Right now we're heading back to the TARDIS to analyze the..." he cut off as they crested a hill and saw a figure lying on the path.  
  
Without a word, Jason took off. He knew that figure; Kenshin. The red hair spilled around his form the high, top-knot pony-tail the boy sported, looking almost like blood next to the pale skin that seemed far paler than it had that morning.  
  
He stopped when he reached Kenshin's side and felt the kid's neck as the Doctor caught up. "He's got a pulse," he said in a hurried, but calm voice, "but he's cold".  
  
"And he's breathing," the Doctor added on, "barely."  
  
Jason gently turned him to lay on his back to allow for better breathing.  
  
"Something's did this to him," the Doctor said suddenly, searching the area quickly. "We need to get him to the TARDIS."  
  
"If we move him it could injure him more," Jason protested.  
  
"And if we don't whatever it is might come back and finish the job."  
  
For several seconds, the two men stared each other down in a battle of wills. Finally Jason gave in. "Fine," he growled. "You hold his sword, I'll carry him." The Doctor didn't look too happy, but slid the weapon out of the straps around the boy's waist. Jason then grabbed an arm and pulled the red-head up onto his shoulder.  
  
"Lead the way, Doc," he said, not bothering to hide the sarcasm.  
  
The Doctor didn't acknowledge Jason's harshness (as usual) and quickly walked past. The former assassin followed him up and over the hill, around the bend, and across the field to the blue phone box. In seconds, he had the door unlocked and held it open to allow Jason and his burden inside. He quickly followed them, shutting the doors behind him.  
  
"Lay him down over there," the Doctor pointed to one side, then sprinted past them to grab something. Jason gently set the kid on the smooth floor to the side of the raised center and felt for a pulse again, relieved when it came faintly to his fingers.  
  
He moved back when the Doctor came with a blanket in hand. He spread it over Kenshin, and it fell heavily onto the body. More heavily than a normal blanket should in any case.  
  
"What is that?"  
  
The Doctor looked up. "It's a blanket."  
  
"What kind of blanket?"  
  
"Oh," he shrugged. "It's a simple adjustment blanket."  
  
"Adjustment?" He just figured the alien had made a mistake, but the Doctor nodded.  
  
"It adjusts to keep the body at the specified temperature. It will heat up and cool down. Picked it up when I was visiting the planet of the Ood, just to make sure the mass migration turned out."  
  
Jason frowned down at the covered figure. "He looked fine this morning. You said something did this to him? How do you know?"  
  
"There was a slight telepathic trace around him. Too weak to follow, but I sensed it." Before he'd even finished speaking, the Doctor slipped on his glasses, rushed over to the console and then had began to fiddle with the controls. Then he set the vegetable he'd taken from the field earlier down on the console and took out his sonic screwdriver.  
  
"Can't you use the telepathic field from the ship to trace it?"  
  
The Doctor paused and sent an impressed look back at the human. "Actually, that's what I'm attempting to do. How did you come up with that?"  
  
"You spoke about the telepathic field from the ship like it was stronger than your personal skill. If it's that much stronger, it should be able to find smaller traces more accurately, if it functions like most of the technology I've worked with."  
  
For a few seconds, the Doctor said nothing. Then he turned back around, taking a breath. "You're almost right. What I'm really trying to do," he turned on the sonic screwdriver and ran it over the vegetable, "is kill two birds with one stone. Well, three. You see, I think," he paused and grabbed a wire, jamming the end into the plant and turning on the screwdriver again as he continued, "that whatever did this to Kenshin also hit the plants. If the telepathic signature matches, I can almost certainly trace both signals back to their origin with the TARDIS."  
  
"What if they don't match?"  
  
The thin alien didn't even bat an eye. "Then our problem just got worse."  
  
"Our problem?" Jason couldn't help the warning note in his voice. The Doctor stopped and turned around slowly. "When did I become apart of this?"  
  
"Well," the Doctor paused for a moment, "you see, once I land in a timeline and become part of the events I can't use the TARDIS to go back and change anything in that specific timeline. So you're stuck here for a little while."  
  
Jason's continued to direct his stone-carved expression at the man. "Then what about me?"  
  
"What about you?" He wasn't nervous when he said it, but something in his tone told Jason his answer.  
  
"You shouldn't have taken me with you, when you left the timeline. Why did you?"  
  
"Well," the Doctor started, but didn't seem to want to finish.  
  
Jason knew the answer anyway. "You were going to try and take me back."  
  
A heavy silence fell over the room as again the two men stared at each other in a battle of wills. This time, though, the Doctor backed down first. "Yes, I was."  
  
For several more seconds, the silence became so heavy it practically screamed at them. Finally, Jason nodded. Really, why had he ever expected differently? Actually, he'd only been thinking of asking the Doctor to do just that not two hours ago. So any disappointment he may inexplicably feel at the revalation would be something he'd just have to deal with. He knew he had to fix his own problems. Running away and hiding from them didn't help anyone. None the less, he still felt somewhat betrayed by this man who he'd only met less than a day before.  
  
"I was going to help you, though," the Doctor said. Jason knew he wasn't saying it to try and amend the damage, but it still didn't help the situation much. "Really."  
  
The former assassin didn't answer, instead bending down to check Kenshin's pulse again. His temperature had gone back up and some color had returned to his face. The steady thumping under his fingers felt stronger too.  
  
A sudden beeping had him whirling back to the console, watching as the Doctor rushed around, adjusting more knobs in between pressing buttons left and right.  
  
"What does that mean?" Jason asked, not caring that his voice sounded much colder than it had before.  
  
"That means," the Doctor said, sticking his tongue between his teeth in concentration, "I was right...and wrong."  
  
"What do you mean?"  
  
The beeping stopped, and the tall man froze as he watched a screen on the console. "It means that the telepathic signals are so similar they're almost identical...but they are coming from two different sources. And if I'm right," he paused and looked back at Jason, his expression serious. "There aren't just two of those out there, there are at least a dozen weaker signals...and one very strong one.  
  
"The real problem, though, is that the one that got to the vegetable and the one that attached itself to Kenshin were both weaker." He sighed and took off his glasses. "It's been at work for at least three hours, probably more."  
  
"Doing what exactly?"  
  
The Doctor looked back at Jason. "Feeding off of his life force."  
  
Well, the assassin had not been expecting that. "Feeding off of his life force?" he asked incredulously.  
  
"Yes," the Doctor said softly. "Whatever caused this is an alien."


	4. Aliens in Old Japan

Jason felt his eyes widen at the revelation. An alien? On Earth? This early in history? It took him several seconds to process that.

Before he'd gone to sleep the night before, Jason would have vowed that he could handle anything. After all, with the experience and training he had, it wasn't that far of a stretch. But as far as he'd known when he'd risen from bed that morning, Earth was alone in the universe. Now he'd run into an actual alien and been dragged back in time only to find more off-world creatures had taken up at least temporary residence. His life had gone from nasty to bizarre in what had only seemed like hours to him (less if he only counted when he'd run onto the roof to when he'd ended up in a field in old Japan).

How many aliens had history missed?! Well, he could understand how they might miss the Doctor. At least he _looked_ human. Jason found he did take some comfort in that, but what about this other alien?

"You mean an alien like you?"

"Of course not," the Doctor shot him an offended look. "I'm not a parasite."

"What then?"

"Not sure."

Jason scoffed. "Helpful."

"Oi," the Doctor defended, "I'll have you know there are at least a dozen different species that this could be! To figure out exactly what it is," a smile crept over his face, "we'll have to find one."

The assassin could only blink in surprise. "So you want to go out there, run around, and try to find a creature that wants to suck our bodies dry of energy when we have no idea what it looks like?"

The Doctor considered that for a moment. "Basically." That stupid smile never left his face.

Jason suppressed a sigh, shooting a dangerous glare at him. "You do this too often if you enjoy it that much."

The Doctor shrugged. "What's not to love? Lots of running. Keeps you healthy." The American rolled his eyes and opened his mouth to say something more when a noise from behind him distracted them both.

"Where is this?" Kenshin had apparently woken up, because he sat up and looked around at the large room groggily, although he must have been able to acknowledge his unfamiliar surroundings because his face paled slightly again.

"Um, it's..." the Doctor started, "a little complicated."

"We're inside his space ship," Jason spoke up, his voice dry.

Kenshin blinked at them, took another quick look around, then turned back to them. "What is a space ship?"

Jason frowned. He wasn't a huge history buff and didn't tend to know much that hadn't applied to his jobs, but he found the answer unnerving. Had they gone _that_ far back in time? Hadn't most first world countries gone through major ideal awakenings in the late 1800's? He'd thought it would just be that simple.

"It's...a ship that sails through the stars," the Doctor finally spoke up.

Kenshin's eyes widened. "The stars? How is that possible?"

"Look," Jason said before the Doctor could say anything, "one of us will explain the details later. Right now, we need to find an alien."

"Not helping," the Doctor muttered to Jason at Kenshin's even more confused expression. He then turned and spoke to the red-head. "We found you on the road, passed out. Do you remember what happened before that?"

Concentration crossed the boy's features as he tried to remember. "I...found something."

"What?"

"In the ground. It looked like a large bird's egg, but it was soft."

"What?" The Doctor's voice had turned serious again.

"That's all I can remember," Kenshin almost muttered with a scowl.

The Doctor held up his hand. "Small and white, about this big?" he asked, nodding to the two or three inches of space between his forefinger and thumb.

"Yes," the kid nodded. "What is the matter?" Apparently, Jason wasn't the only one who saw the color drain from the Doctor's face.

"The situation just got worse."

"How?" Kenshin asked. At the same time Jason said, "Why?"

"It's a Demmelfca," he said. "A parasite that can travel through space. It lands on planets, reproduces and buries its young, which then feed off of the life on the planet while the parent moves on. The larvae ravage the land then move on themselves when the food source runs out."

Jason spoke up. "Let me guess; the food source is 'life force'." He couldn't believe he just said that seriously.

"Life force?" Kenshin asked, looking thoroughly confused.

The Doctor turned around and squatted in front of the console, reaching up and into a compartment on the bottom. When he pulled his hand out, he held four, white, smooth gems that seemed to glow. On the flat bottom of each one, a circuit had been placed.

"Here," the alien tossed one to each of the humans. "These will protect you from them."

"These?" Jason raise a skeptical eyebrow.

"What are they?" Kenshin asked, studying his closely.

"They're telepathic gems with dampening circuits."

"Huh?" the swordsman looked up, more puzzled than ever.

"The thing you touched feeds through a link to your mind. Well, your soul really. This will protect you from it. Place it somewhere on your skin, and it will stay there until you want it released."

The Doctor put it on the back of his hand and held it up for them, wiggling his fingers. "See?"

Jason raised an eyebrow and reluctantly decided to place his on his person, just below the collarbone. Kenshin continued to look at it skeptically for several seconds before he placed his on the back of his neck.

"Right! Do not take those off, and don't touch them! The eggs, I mean. That's how they make contact, through touch. As long as you don't come into contact with any directly, you'll be fine. And you," he pointed at Kenshin, "if you take it off, that thing will start to feed off of you again. Got it?"

Kenshin's eyes widened. "It is still 'feeding' off of me?"

The Doctor began to rush around again, grabbing the vegetable and sticking it in his coat pocket again with one hand while the other hit a few more buttons. "Was. Right now, the TARDIS is protecting you." Looking down, he seemed to contemplate for a moment. "Now where did I put that? Oh yes!" He rushed over to a seemingly random part of the mesh floor, dropped down and removed said flooring. He then stuck his hand down inside and pulled out a large, old-fashioned looking remote control, except for the screen at the top.

"What's that?" Jason asked.

"This..." he paused, "is a way for me to link back to the ship," he said absently as he checked it over. A few seconds later, apparently satisfied, he got up again and ran out of the room. "Don't touch anything!" he said before he disappeared deeper into the ship.

Behind Jason, Kenshin cleared his throat. "Could you please explain now?" he asked.

Jason scratched his head. He really had no reason not to. "Um, you know the Earth is round, right?"

Kenshin deadpanned. "I am familiar with the concept."

"Good." That made the explanation much easier. "So, what if I said there were other planets out there? Like ours, but more advanced. They can travel through the stars."

"The planets?"

"No, the people on the planets."

The red-head cocked his head, trying to wrap his mind around the new concept. "Like ships sail through the sea?"

Jason paused for a moment, comparing the analogy. "Something like that," he said finally. "Well, this guy is from one of those planets."

"Why would he visit Earth?"

The former assassin shrugged. "Beats me."

"Oi, I have my reasons," both men turned to see the Doctor coming through the door, and tossed each of them a small bundle.

"What's this?" Jason asked.

"Gloves," the Doctor said. "To stop them from establishing a feeding link."

Kenshin shook his head as he forced himself unsteadily to his feet. "I still do not understand. How can something feed off of one's life?"

The Doctor still seemed to be rushing around, although Jason had no idea what he was doing. Thankfully, the alien answered. "Living requires energy. These beings are able to feed off that energy."

"How?"

The alien finished with a flamboyant slap to a particularly large button and turned around to face them. "You know, you're as bad with questions as he is," he nodded to Jason, who didn't react. Then he turned and ran to the door, taking out the device he'd said would link him back to the ship. "All right, boys, let's go!"

xXx

Kenshin had seen his share of strangeness. After his time and involvement in the war he would say that he had at times witnessed the practically unexplainable.

This topped the list. Easily. And he wondered exactly how the situation had come into being so quickly. Somehow, he'd been quite literally swept up and now traveled with another man from across seas, who at least somewhat shared his sentiment, and another who apparently wasn't even human. He didn't look strange, although now that he thought about it, there had always been something off about this man. His ki felt...different, in a way he couldn't describe. So honestly, Kenshin could believe this man was not born on this planet (although he still found the whole idea difficult to swallow). That could also explain how he'd thought the man was older than he looked. Perhaps on other planets, people lived longer.

He followed Jason (now in dark, tight clothing that made Kenshin uncomfortable just by looking at it) who in turn followed the Doctor. The alien had left his long coat behind, and now only wore the brown suit similar to those that the Westerners favored. He turned and grabbed the door, stepping outside and into the field. Jason and Kenshin followed.

That was when he noticed where they'd exited. It was the exact place the small, blue box had been earlier. Turning around, Kenshin couldn't help his mouth dropping in astonishment.

"This is the work of youkai!" he gasped. The inside of the box, which he could now clearly see, was somehow bigger than the outside. It made no logical sense!

"Nope," the Doctor responded as he shut the doors and locked them, "It's not magic. Not really. It's just..." he paused, noticing Kenshin's frankly astonished look. "My...magic. This way!" With that, he grinned broadly and then started off towards the fields. Kenshin decided he'd think on it later. He didn't know if his over-taxed mind could handle it at the moment.

The three men hurried over the fields, with the Doctor in the lead. He turned slightly north, away from the roads, and angling towards the opposite end of the fields, closer to the forest. Kenshin wondered briefly why they had decided to forgo looking into the small, egg-like creatures, and he also wondered how the man seemed to know his destination as his eyes stayed locked on the little box-like thing he'd said would hook himself up to the impossible box. Yet another thing that made no sense to him, just like seemingly everything else about this man.

As they continued to walk, coming to the edge of the forest and never slowing down, Kenshin came to two realizations. First, they made for strange allies. Second, he'd already begun to trust them. Saving someone's life tended to produce that kind of bond (and he had no doubt they'd saved his), but it was more than that. These two men had not lied to him once. Even the man who claimed to be a former assassin. They'd both withheld information (not that Kenshin could really blame them, as he would do the same in their shoes), but they had not outright lied. In the hitokiri's book, that was a refreshing breath of air. He didn't even bother remembering all of the times his superiors or comrades in the war had done so. Not that he felt any resentment towards them, he of all people knew that one had to do what they had to do to win a war. It was just...nice.

"Doctor," Jason spoke up, drawing Kenshin's glance. "Are these things we're going after intelligent?"

"Don't know," the alien shrugged and smiled again. "We'll find out."

"That's why we're passing the fields. You're heading after the parent."

The Doctor shot another impressed glance at the assassin. "You're assuming the stronger signal is the parent."

"It is, isn't it?" The Doctor didn't answer. Instead, his grin widened, showing more than a little mischief and a touch of insanity to boot. It didn't seem to reassure Jason, and the former hitokiri found he agreed with the sentiment.

Kenshin still found following their conversations somewhat difficult. Even though they spoke Japanese well, it still seemed like they were really speaking in a completely different language. He'd only vaguely heard of half the terms they threw around and discussed, as if they used the strange words on a regular basis.

Honestly, for the first time since he'd left his Master's place, Kenshin felt outclassed. The alien possessed knowledge and experience that he suspected put his brief (albeit harsh) experience to shame, while the other had lived a life much like his, but for longer and with more up-to-date knowledge on technology. All Kenshin had at his disposal was Hiten Mitsurugi. The style wasn't anything to scoff at, but it still felt somewhat inadequate. Of course, he also had not seen the men fight. Perhaps he would reserve judgment.

The Doctor traipsed, uncaring and loud through the underbrush, while the two humans ghosted along behind him, intent on the area around them and keeping their senses open for danger. The ground began to slant up more steeply as they approached the mountains but this did little to slow them down.

Kenshin felt the strange ki long before the Doctor stopped them with a hand signal. It made the human-like alien's ki seem _normal_. Again, Kenshin tried to place the feeling of this new presence, but the only word that his mind would supply was "different".

"Right," the Doctor said, shoving the device into his pockets (Kenshin vaguely wondered how he could do so when the pocket didn't seem large enough). "It's just ahead," he fixed them with a serious look. "Now, by the time they become adults, their appearance changes somewhat, but you can't stare at it or it might get offended.

"Look around. If you come across anyone else, help them while I talk to it."

"What will you discuss?" Kenshin asked calmly.

The Doctor gave him a scrutinizing look. "It's only doing what it was born to do," he responded. "If it's intelligent at all, I have to give it a chance."

"And if it doesn't want to take your chance?" Jason asked, his tone dry and sarcastic.

The Doctor didn't answer, meeting his eyes for just a moment before pulling out his own pair of gloves and slipping them on.

"Alright," he said, fixing them both with one last look. "Alons-y!"

Immediately, he turned around, hurrying through the trees and bamboo shoots again. Kenshin and Jason quickly caught up, although Kenshin noticed his fellow human seemed to be having a slightly more difficult time. Perhaps American and English forests weren't like these? The thought had never really crossed his mind.

They slowed as a large ridge stretched up a good 20 feet before them. Almost directly ahead, a large cave opened ominously. Without so much as a hesitation, the Doctor climbed inside. Kenshin exchanged a wary glance with Jason before they both followed.

xXx

Jason didn't know quite what to expect when they walked in the cave. He'd figured it would be similar to something he'd seen on Star Trek or Twilight Zone as it was the only references he really had to draw from. Instead, he got an eye-full of psychedelic 70's. The actual shape the Doctor had described for what he assumed were the young didn't change too much, although it got lumpier. And disturbingly, it pulsated.

Strange colors seemed to have dyed the skin, snaking out like splashes that mixed and melded when they crossed paths, like living ink tossed on a canvas. Green, purple and blue throbbed through the top-most, transparent layer of skin, coloring over the dull yellowish gray flesh below.

He noticed its large tentacles moving around lethargically, and it even seemed to glow slightly, (seriously, it looked like it had been yanked right out of a bad trip). It also didn't look quite like what he thought a giant squid would, as the tentacles varied in size and tapered off at the end to a sharp point. They reminded him more of tree branches swaying in the wind than actual appendages. The varying iridescence cast the dark cave into a dim, spinning light that reminded Jason of a lava lamp or a softer form of the lighting one would normally find at club.

The really strange thing about the whole scene, was that the being wasn't nestled in a corner, nor did it look to be the center of a web with the tentacles spread out. No, the large mass of flesh easily the size of a car actually _floated_ lazily around the small cave. He had no idea how the heck something that large could freaking fly, but it did. Only a few tentacles brushed the ground every now and then, but no where near enough of them to keep the thing suspended. Other floating appendages had wrapped themselves around various objects, and it took a few seconds before Jason realized they were people...or what was left of them. Even from here, he could see many had turned into dried-out husks, now resembling the vegetable thing they'd extracted from the ground earlier.

A little worried, Jason glanced over at Kenshin to see how the kid was taking it. Not very well, he concluded. He'd frozen, eyes wide in utter disbelief as he tried to take in the impossible scene. He also looked a little sick. Whether that was from the strange motion of the pulsing light or just the scene in general was anybody's guess.

"Hey," he whispered to the kid, who turned his dark eyes up to Jason. "You gonna be okay?"

For a moment, the former hitokiri said nothing. Then he closed his eyes, took a deep breath, nodded and walked past Jason, stopping behind the Doctor, who had paused on some fairly level ground a few feet inside the cave entrance.

With a glance back at the other two, the alien reached down and removed the white gem from the back of his hand. Jason and Kenshin eyed him warily, but said nothing. Then he turned and tossed the gem to Jason.

"Stay out of it's way," he nodded into the cave. "If you find anyone, put that on them. I have another one, remember?" Jason wanted to ask if the Doctor suddenly lost it. Of course there was no way he was going to approach that _thing._ Kenshin, on the other hand, simply nodded and began edging his way around the alien, keeping close to the large rocks that littered the ground and made a partial wall. Watching the kid simply follow orders like that struck a little too close to home, and he made a mental note to confront him about it later.

Right now, though, he figured he should probably try going the opposite direction.

"Oh, that's not good," the Doctor's voice stopped him in his tracks.

"What?" he asked quietly.

"He's never heard of the Shadow Proclamation."

"The what?"

The Doctor shot him a look that said 'I'll tell you later'. "Well," he said aloud to the thing. Jason had the distinct feeling he was speaking up specifically for their benefit. "It essentially means, 'I come in peace, let's talk'!"

He paused for a moment, apparently listening through telepathy, Jason realized. Had he really taken off the protection just to talk to the thing? Such a dangerous move would never have crossed his mind, and even now he couldn't help but marvel at the stupidity of it. You weren't supposed to open yourself up to the enemy like that!

"That's why we're here," he said.

Another pause.

"No, to help," he said finally. Jason found himself a little more on edge when he heard the slightly desperate tone in his voice. "I can take you and your young to a planet with no sentient life where you can raise them..."

He faded off. After a moment, his face took on a slightly sickened look.

"But you can live off of...other types..."

The Doctor stopped again, 'listening' to the thing. Jason had reached a corner of the cave, and did not like what he saw. Apparently the _thing_ liked to deposit its victims in this corner. He recognized the clothing on the bodies belonging to what he'd been able to observe of the culture. They'd come too late. An indifferent mask slid over his face as he began to shift through them. Normally as an assassin, he wasn't the one who had to 'clean up' after his missions. That's what he left to the cops and politicians. That's also what it felt like he was doing, for some reason.

He hated it.

"I could take you there in minutes! They won't die!" The Doctor insisted. Jason didn't respond, just looking for a sign of unwrinkled flesh...of life.

"No you—Kenshin!" The Doctor's voice had him spinning around so fast he almost gave himself whiplash. He could barely see the kid over in the opposite corner, and he didn't look too bad. The red-head stared defiantly back at the doctor, his hands on something.

"I will not let him die," Kenshin said softly, although Jason could hear him clearly.

"You really shouldn't have done that!" The Doctor said.

"I'll be fine," the teenager insisted.

And right about then is when everything hit the fan.

xXx

Kenshin wished he could know how successful the Doctor's arguments were, but without 'hearing' the other side, he could only take what the human-like alien said.

He didn't sound too positive.

The former hitokiri continued his stealthy glide around the cave, over crumbling boulders and through the dust, dirt and leaves littered throughout the smaller rubble on the floor. He saw movement out of the corner of his eye and froze, looking over to find one of the _thing's_ appendages (he really couldn't call them arms) had drifted towards him...and what was more, it held something in it.

The bloated tentacle had wrapped its rough, uneven skin around someone. Kenshin felt his eyes harden. It had just sucked the life right out of the villager. It was a boy, Kenshin surmised from the build. Couldn't have been more then 13 or 14...

Wait... Kenshin's eyes went wide. He'd felt _ki_ from the form... The boy was still alive! He took several quick steps that put him close to the slow tentacle easily as thick around as his waist. As soon as he'd come up to the yellowish-gray flesh, he put a hand to the boy's mouth. Yes! He could feel a breath! But only barely.

It only took moments for the swordsman to surmise the situation. Who knew how long the kid had been wrapped up and touching the thing? It needed direct contact to start feeding, but what happened if it continued to touch someone? Kenshin had had serious problems after only 15 minutes or so, although he suspected a lot of that had to do with how it worked on his mind. He figured he'd only been out maybe three and a half hours judging from the position of the sun when they'd exited the impossible box. As of this moment, he felt as good as ever, but the boy...

The boy was dying.

So Kenshin did the only thing he could think of. Reaching in back of his neck, he grabbed the gem/jewel thing that had somehow remained stuck there, and it came off immediately. Somehow, the red-head felt whatever 'link' he had with the little egg immediately. Now that he concentrated on it, the influence it had over him, even from this distance, surprised him. It was subtle, but there nonetheless, and it did seem to be draining his energy. It wasn't anything he couldn't handle, now that he was aware of it, though. At least for a while.

He glanced over at the Doctor one more time, and then stuck the gem on the boy's neck.

"Kenshin!" The Doctor yelled his name.

With determined eyes, he fixed his stare on the man, flaring his ki dangerously. "I'm not going to let him die."

The Doctor ran a hand through his hair. "You really shouldn't have done that!"

"I'll be fine," the former hitokiri insisted.

Before he'd even finished speaking, he saw it coming, but even with his reflexes he couldn't dodge it. The formerly lethargic, slow tentacles suddenly shot out at a much greater speed, wrapping themselves around his upper body and neck. Kenshin's eyes suddenly went wide.

_You taste good._ Instinctively, Kenshin knew it was the _thing_ talking...directly into his head? The thought process he quite literally felt from the being was surprisingly simple, but overpowering almost to a point of being painful.

_No! Don't!_ That was strange...he heard the Doctor, but it felt more like an echo...like someone had yelled from a great distance. Still, the intensity of the man's words weren't lost.

"Let him go!" This time he knew he'd actually _heard_ the Doctor.

Then the feeling of his energy draining away came back, but so much stronger and more sudden. It took Kenshin's breath away. His hands had already grasped the tentacle in a vain effort to get it to let go as he couldn't reach his sword. The rough-looking skin felt rubbery beneath his gloved fingers.

_They worked hard on you._ They weren't words per se, but Kenshin understood the basic concept none the less. He didn't quite realize what the thing meant until the flashbacks started. He saw his memories surround him, each as realistic as when he'd lived through them. His parents, smiling as they worked on their fields, making sure to keep him out of sight of others passing by—shielding him from the harsh glares and hisses of 'youkai' that he didn't understand. The women who protected him from the marauders falling before his eyes, begging for mercy even as they pleaded with him to live. Hiko Sejiro thrusting a sword into his hand, spending hour after hour with him, training him to wield the weapon.

_So small, but so tasty..._ The army doing everything they could to keep him a secret, even as he sharpened and honed his skill as a hitokiri. The blood never really did seem to come off of his skin even now...and then the really painful memories started.

"NO!" he yelled, screamed really, rejecting the utterly drenching pain as she flashed before his eyes. He couldn't face this...not so soon after. Only two years, and he hadn't been able to visit her grave once. He didn't feel worthy. He never would. She'd done so many things for him...she'd changed him...

Then the memories stopped almost as quickly as they had come, and he sat there, breathing hard. The Thing still had its tentacle wrapped firmly around him, but he couldn't hear more than a faint line of thought.

"Kenshin?" he heard the fairly strained voice of the Doctor and forced himself to look up. The alien stood there, looking at him worriedly with his hand on Kenshin's now exposed arm where the loose sleeve had fallen down when he'd tried to loosen the being's grip. The white stone in between the dark-haired man's fingers pressed firmly to Kenshin's skin.

"That's...yours," the hitokiri said tiredly.

"Are you alright?"

_So...tasty..._ The voice came faintly to his mind.

"It's...still there," he said slowly, gasping for breath. "The stronger...one. I can still...hear it."

The Doctor didn't look too happy, but he nodded. "It's stronger than the dampening gem."

_You different...but so delicious..._ That's when Kenshin realized it. The thing had turned its attention away from him. The tentacle had loosened enough he could even slip out with a little struggling. Why? Then he realized where its energy had turned to instead...

"You touched it," Kenshin, his voice accusing.

The Doctor didn't answer.

"He what?" Jason asked, coming to stand beside them.

"I'm fine," The Doctor insisted, but his face had gone waxy and white. Determined, Kenshin finally slipped free of the appendage, surprised that he could remain standing upright after everything that had just happened.

"Sunofa..." Jason muttered, fading off before he finished, and fished inside a pouch at his hip. Seconds later, he had the fourth gem in his hand and had stuck it onto the Doctor's hand.

The man sighed in relief.

_Where are you? Where you go?!_ Suddenly more tentacles shot towards them, almost faster than Kenshin could watch...but not faster than he could draw a sword.

_Slash._ He'd turned the blade to the reverse side, cutting through at least three of the appendages like they were made of butter. The thing recoiled, and vaguely, Kenshin heard it scream in pain in his mind.

Both Jason (who had some strange, small, metal tube in his hand pointed at the thing) and the Doctor couldn't help but stare at him in amazement. Out of habit, the swordsman slid his sakabatō back into the scabbard after flicking off the substances the thing had left on his precious sword.

_I kill you!_ Even more tentacles came at them. Jason came out of his stupor first. Loud bangs that hurt Kenshin's ears came from the metal tube. Was that a gun? He'd never seen one shaped quite like that before...

"Get out! Now!" he vaguely heard the Doctor say, and nodded in acknowledgment. Somehow, they ducked all of the now incredibly fast tentacles and made it out of the cave. It seemed to be somewhat cautious concerning them now, although the anger was slowly pushing that caution to the side.

Once outside, Kenshin realized that Jason had grabbed the boy Kenshin had found, now carrying him over his shoulder as he rushed along ahead of them. He'd already run ahead, but Kenshin refused to leave the Doctor, who seemed determined but still weak. After a few seconds, Jason seemed to realize they weren't keeping up with him despite his burden, and turned to urge them on. He never got the chance. Instead, his eyes flew wide.

"DUCK!" he yelled. Kenshin's battle reflexes kicked in, and he did as he was told, dropping to the ground as something rushed by overhead. The thing had flown at them, taking out several of the trees and bamboo shoots, raining them heavily down around the group.

_I kill you! I kill you! I kill you! I eat you now!_

He felt the words in his head, along with the anger and frustration that came along with it, and for just a moment, he wasn't in the Meiji era, but in the Bakumatsu, on protection detail. A touch of depression made it's way in through the mask he used to clamp down on his feelings. So this is what his teacher had meant when he'd told Kenshin that he'd never be able to escape it. Would he be drawn back into his memories every time a remotely dangerous situation arose?

Standing up, he shoved those thoughts aside to contemplate on later, ignoring the drain on his energy reserves. He only had a handful of techniques he could use against an opponent like this. Most of his battoujutsu required him to be standing on solid ground. With the way this thing was flying at him, he doubted he'd live through using those techniques against it. He'd never had to go up against something with that kind of mass and speed before.

So he had to get higher...than a flying, youkai-like, egg thing. Right. He'd have one shot at this, if he was lucky.

Expertly, he dodge-rolled as the being came diving at them again. It was worse than a volley of cannon balls! Fortunately, that kind of speed required a great deal of control, and it couldn't seem to stop, pause or turn very quickly. As such, they should have a few seconds in between each attack. Glancing around, he saw Jason taking shelter at the base of a tree, leaving the boy there. The Doctor crouched low to the ground, searching the sky. One look told Kenshin the alien would be alright for now, so he followed the man's gaze. In the distance, the thing turned and began to speed back towards them.

Eyes steeling, the former hitokiri sprinted towards a nearby tree, placed his foot on the sloping trunk and leapt towards the lowest branch, landing on it nicely and crouching immediately so as to use the momentum to launch himself towards the next cluster of branches. That would be high enough.

The thing swooped low, heading for the Doctor. Jason had pulled out his guns again and was shooting at the thing, yelling and racing towards them. Kenshin liked his spirit. Not to mention the distraction.

The thing continued to scream in his head, louder and angrier each time the shots hit it. He saw it adjust its position just enough to take a swipe at both the Doctor and Jason. The assassin apparently realized it too, because he started running sideways, never stopping his bullets except to reload, and, impossibly, he shot 12 bullets before he had to reload each time! The very idea of guns that efficient did not sit well with the hikotiri at all.

He didn't need to steel himself or take a deep breath before he took a running leap off of the branch, directly at the Doctor, who had flattened himself on the ground again. The gun shots stopped, and Kenshin realized that Jason had paused to stare in both amazement and utter disbelief. The thing passed directly underneath him, and he thrust his sword down through the hard, rubbery flesh in a perfectly executed Ryu Tsui Sen Zan.

The egg-shaped alien screeched in his mind, now in panic and pain more than anything else. It immediately swept up into the sky, speeding away with Kenshin clinging to the sword now buried almost to the hilt in its flesh. The colorful substance that had flashed through its skin, now orange, red and yellow instead of the calmer colors from earlier, had begun to spurt out, staining Kenshin's hakama and making the thing's back slippery.

His expression never changed through the whole ordeal, but now just a slightest touch of worry entered his eyes. Heights and hikotiri didn't often mix. He'd had to deal with a few assignments that incorporated some of the higher buildings in Kyoto, but those rarely reached more than three or four stories. All of this flashed through his mind in an instant as he realized he had to withdraw immediately or he would be at the being's mercy when it stopped panicking.

Bracing his feet as well as he could, he yanked at the sword. It took more strength than he cared to admit, but it finally slid loose, causing the thing to shriek yet again and increase its speed. With his sword came more of the substance, now covering him in a strange, glow. No longer able to keep his footing on the slippery, moving surface, he pushed off haphazardly, only then realizing just how high into the air they'd been able to climb in just those few seconds he'd been on the thing's back.

If he came out of this alive, he doubted he'd be able to move for a very long time. If not...well, he hoped he wouldn't be reincarnated as bird.

Of course, that's when his adrenalin rush wore off and his vision faded to black as the combination of speed, fatigue and sheer shock finally overtook him.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks to Chibivampire1313 and Kuroi_Atropos for beta reading!


	5. Assassins

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks again to Chibivampire1313 for beta reading this!

Jason watched in a speechless awe as the kid launched himself out of the tree he'd somehow been able to climb (jump?!) in just seconds. Then, with perfect timing, the redhead spun impossibly and shoved his sword into the egg-thing's back. Jason was one of the best assassins trained. It was a simple fact. He'd seen and trained with some of the most intelligent and talented men and women on the planet...and he'd never seen anyone move like that. What was more, the blade struck true, and Jason knew it had to be like trying the same move on a car going a good hundred miles an hour. It...just shouldn't be possible, and yet, somehow the kid had managed to not only pull it off, but he kept ahold of his sword! That...in hindsight was probably not the best idea.

"What was that?" The Doctor exclaimed, voicing Jason's own thoughts. They both watched, jaws slack, as the egg-thing rose into the the air, tentacles flailing in what was undoubtedly pain and panic, taking Kenshin with it.

Then Jason saw the kid yank his sword out and swore. It didn't matter how well someone moved, if they fell from that height, they wouldn't likely survive. He was already running forward when Kenshin began to fall.

"David!" he heard the Doctor yell, and looked over his shoulder. He had his screwdriver-thing out, pointed at one of the white gems as he followed Jason. Then the Doctor nodded towards one of the trees. "Climb!"

He didn't have experience in the kind of monkey jumping the kid had just displayed, but he could climb. His mind snapped into order-taking mode, and somehow, he'd reached the middle branches when a shudder went through the tree. It had been perfectly stable before, but now it seemed like it wanted to explode.

 _Not good! h_ e thought, not daring to even try and find the source as the kid had almost reached him. 12 seconds in the air...there was no way he would survive hitting the ground. With a grind of his teeth, the ex-assassin grabbed onto the branch above him, swung up onto it, and then turned and jumped just as the tree gave one final, violent shudder, and fell to the ground.

Jason grabbed the kid, ignoring the very painful jar of their collision in mid-air with some effort, and tried to land as softly as he could, hoping that it would be enough.

Thankfully, it was the upper most part of the branches and leaves they landed on. It didn't feel pleasant in the slightest, but after several dazed seconds, he realized the kid was breathing. He also realized that he hurt...all over.

"That was _brilliant_!" The Doctor yelled, clearing a path as best he could through the tangle of twigs and branches. He still had the little, silver tool in his hand.

"T-that thing did this?" Jason asked in disbelief, first nodding at the tool and then gesturing to the tree around them. The doctor blinked and looked around at the mess. Then he turned and held the device up.

"Overloaded the circuits on the dampening gem. It acted as a medium for the wood in the tree, which these normally don't work on. So yes. Sonic screwdriver. Never leave home without one."

Jason felt torn between looking impressed and highly annoyed, and somehow doubted either emotion came through. Finally, he settled on angry, glaring at the Doctor. "I told you not to call me David."

"Well then come up with a name!" The Doctor reached down and felt Kenshin's vitals. Then he sighed with relief, suddenly looking as if he'd been hit by a bus.

A quick check of his own body had Jason realizing that he'd sprained his right knee, his left ankle and both of his wrists. He also had some fairly deep cuts and gashes that would need tending to and a dislocated shoulder. Nothing he hadn't dealt with before, but not exactly a desirable state of being either.

To his surprise, the screwdriver thing had some sort of healing setting The next thing he knew, his sprains felt fine (although they still looked rather bad), his shoulder had been reset, and he was on his feet.

It was about that point that Jason's mind decided it had seen too much and clicked into autopilot as it tried to recover.

xXx

The sun sank slowly into the west, casting the world into soft oranges and reds. Two figures staggered on their elongated shadows through a field towards the blue Telephone Box situated in the center.

At just over five feet, Kenshin probably weighed maybe a hundred pounds sopping wet and Jason couldn't help but feel grateful as he had to carry both him and the boy they'd found in the cavern back to the TARDIS. By the time they'd reached the impossible box, he was staggering almost as much as the Doctor. Truthfully, he was surprised the alien was still on his feet at all seeing as he'd had an alien feeding off of his life force the whole time. Even with Jason's dampening gem (he hadn't touched the egg-like alien after all), it just couldn't be good for a person.

The Doctor unlocked the door and stumbled in, followed by Jason who walked determinedly past his host and off to the side to lay down his burdens. As soon as the doors closed, the Doctor let out a sigh of relief.

"I need a cup of tea," he muttered, running his hand through his hair tiredly. He disappeared into the back rooms for a few moments, returning with a steaming cup in one hand, a thermos with a strap hung on that arm and a second blanket over the other.

"Here," he said, walking over to Jason and holding the blanket out. The former assassin nodded and draped the heavy material over the Japanese boy as Jason had already covered Kenshin with the blanket the Doctor had given him earlier.

"Don't we need to set it to a temperature or something?" he asked.

"Already did," the Doctor replied. "Voice activated."

"Hmm," Jason acknowledged, too tired to say or ask anything else.

"Want some tea?" the alien held out the thermos by its strap. Jason eyed it, but didn't move. "Come on," the Doctor insisted, "it's just tea. From England..."

Jason reached out and took the thermos slowly. "Is that where you live when you're here on Earth?"

"Sometimes," the Doctor responded. "Why?"

"Accent."

"I like it," the thin man shrugged. "It's a good accent." Abruptly his tone changed and he sounded distinctly American when he spoke. "Better than this," he said, then changed back. "No style, no class."

Jason shrugged, taking a sip from the container. He'd never been a big fan of tea, but the warm liquid felt very good as it slid down his throat.

"Alright, you need some sleep, right?" the Doctor asked. "There's a couch through the door, second hall on your left, third door on your right and keep walking to the door at the end of that hall. You can stay there for a while. Right by the bathroom."

Jason blinked at the instruction, not quite sure he really believed all of that had been crammed into the phone box as well. The Doctor took out his Sonic Screwdriver, kneeling over Kenshin and lifting up a corner of the blanket to examine the substance that stained the kid's hakama. Jason idly wondered if he were just tired or if the stuff actually glowed...

"What about you?"

"What about me?"

Jason let his emotionless mask drop enough to show his dry, unimpressed expression. "You're tired too," he pointed out. Probably more so, now that he thought about it.

"Ah, I'm fine," the Doctor dismissed with a wave of his hand. "All I needed was that cup of tea. Not human, remember?"

"Don't care. You're showing more signs of fatigue than I am."

The alien shook his head. "No really, I don't..."

Jason's still unimpressed and somewhat threatening gaze didn't change, not moving a muscle as he stared the other man down. Somehow he suspected that if the Doctor were really adamant, and Jason wasn't right, he'd have no chance of doing so. This time, however, the man rubbed the back of his head, looking like a child reluctantly obeying a parent's order.

"Fine, I'll rest. You sleep."

The human glared at him some more before he turned and walked towards the doorway, knowing that was about as good as he was going to get. He didn't even have the energy to wonder what the Doctor meant by "rest".

Somehow he made it to the room the Doctor had described. When he finally found it, he stumbled towards the couch. He'd fallen asleep before his head hit the cushions.

xXx

"Mister Jason," a scratchy, tired voice chipped away at his precious unconsciousness. Oh how he wanted to remain in that blissful state. Unfortunately, as always, instinct kicked in, waking him up almost immediately, and he attacked the voice. Anyone stupid enough to come at him in his sleep deserved what they got.

A flash of red over wide, blue-grey eyes that all managed to duck his assault caused him to pause.

"Kenshin?" he asked. It had been a long time since he had been that deeply asleep. From beside him, the kid stood up from a defensive crouch.

"Forgive me, Mister Jason," he said, bowing slightly. "I should have known better than to wake you like that."

The adrenalin was wearing off, and he relaxed slightly, ignoring the pain now registering in his body. Aches from the different places he'd taken hits from in the fight suddenly made themselves known and he was pretty sure he was still bleeding from a few of the cuts he'd taken. Apparently that screwdriver thing couldn't heal completely. Or maybe it just took the pain away...?

Instead of answering the kid, he just waved the unneeded apology away, a little unnerved at how easily Kenshin had dodged him.

"The Doctor told me you would know how to work the outhouse. I do not understand how there can be an outhouse inside a box that already holds too much, but will accept it if you would show me."

Jason raised an eyebrow. That had to be the most the kid had ever said at once. Then he realized just what the boy had said. Oh yeah, this should be fun. Note the sarcasm.

Looking around, Jason spotted a door just outside the room with the couch. The door to both rooms stood slightly ajar. Inside the second one, he caught a glimpse of what looked like a white bowl shape. Had to be the bathroom. Shaking his head, he walked over. Actually, he didn't really want to think about how that room and all the piping could fit inside the ship either.

"Here," he said. Kenshin followed him, looking warily around at the strange, new room. "That's the outhouse, chamberpot, whatever you know it as. It's there," he pointed to the porcelain toilet. Well, it looked porcelain. It was probably some sort of futuristic material. Vaguely, he wondered why (and tookd a moment to be grateful for the fact that) bathrooms didn't evolve too much in the future. Maybe it was the Doctor being nice to them...or him, at least. Bare minimum or something.

"When you're done," he continued, "you...er...push this button, I guess." He went to put a hand down on the button above the toilet on the back wall, but the water started flowing before he'd even touched it. Silently too. Okay, so maybe toilets did evolve.

Kenshin's eyes kept growing larger and larger as Jason went on, explaining everything he could. The samurai seemed to be fascinated with the soft paper that one simply threw away. He explained that in Japan, one did not just throw away paper like that. It was considered a semi-precious commodity.

"Oh," Jason said as he walked out, "Don't forget to wash your hands."

"What?" Kenshin cocked his head. For a moment, the former assassin did not see a fellow killer in the boy. Instead he saw exactly what he should: a child, barely into manhood, trying to make his way in the world.

He couldn't help a smile. After a few seconds, Jason reached over to the hovering basin that had to be the sink, even if it didn't have a spout. A stream of water splashed up from some holes in the basin and over his hands for a few seconds before they stopped. He hadn't seen any soap, but his hands felt surprisingly clean. Some sort of disinfectant maybe?

"Why?" the former hitokiri studied the basin for a moment, as intently as he had the toilet paper.

"You know about germs, right?"

Kenshin thought for a moment, then nodded slightly. "I believe I do know a little of what you speak of. I have heard such concepts in any case, although I do not quite understand."

"Right. Just think of them as creatures so tiny you just can't see them, but they multiply quickly and can hurt your body. This stops them. You won't get sick this way."

"Oh," the red head stood and nodded. Then he turned to Jason and bowed every so slightly in acknowledgement.

Jason simply nodded and turned to leave the kid to his privacy.

"Mister Jason," Kenshin said softly. Jason turned to look over his shoulder. "Thank you."

For a moment, he felt a loss at what to say. He'd bet his memories that the kid didn't say that often.

"No problem," he responded after a minute, continuing out the door and closing it behind him. Now would be a good time to explore this impossible ship, starting with this room.

It wasn't very large, maybe 12 square feet, if that. The couch had been shoved up to one wall, and looked fairly new. There wasn't much else in the room, with the exception of a lamp-table that had a strange, spherical object floating above it. Warily, he reached out. It started glowing at his touch, and he couldn't help but jump back. It looked like a small sun.

At the second touch, it turned off. Why would there be a lamp here? He could easily see the rest of the room without it, but couldn't seem to find a light source. It was disconcerting. There wasn't much else in the room with the exception of a few 3D-like pictures showing a rather beautiful, red landscape.

In the hallway, he found several other doors. One of them, strangely enough, seemed to be a clothing room of sorts. It looked like a department store with all of the racks and shelves and hangers. He couldn't see any female clothing either. Vaguely, he wondered if those were in another room. He doubted the Doctor would not be prepared for such an eventuality as having a woman on board.

Most of the other rooms he came across had very little in them, and most of those objects he couldn't identify. Some of them he felt he was sure he didn't _want_ to know (although he knew he would end up asking later anyway, not out of curiosity but caution).

He'd almost reached the end of the hall, when he heard Kenshin come out of the bathroom, looking somewhat discomposed.

"That was...strange," he said simply.

Jason let out a quiet chuckle.

"Mister Jason," the red-haired teen walked up to him calmly, but Jason could see the slight hesitation and barely tensed muscles that let him know the former hitokiri felt nervous and uncomfortable. "May I ask you a personal question?"

Trying not to look too resigned, Jason shrugged. He knew where this one was headed.

"You used to kill people for a living." The way he'd said it would have made anyone else cringe. "Why did you stop?"

He knew the underlying thoughts there too. One did not get into such business without some serious consideration. One did not remain alive without serious dedication. As such, one did not usually simply leave of their own accord.

Jason didn't like to talk about his past. He didn't even like to think about it and shied away from doing so whenever possible. Funny how he'd regained his memories only to wish he could forget again. But something about the pleading look in Kenshin's eyes tugged at him.

After a few moments, Jason turned to face his fellow assassin.

"I got into it because I thought that was the best way to serve my country."

"You were at war?"

Jason paused for a moment. "Yes," he said finally. "Although no one really knew it." Politics were war, whether it be with other countries or between members within the same party or even family. They took just as many casualties.

Kenshin looked slightly confused, but let it slide in favor of hearing the rest of Jason's story.

"I was trained as a part of a secret government organization, and was sent to assassinate political targets.

"One of my missions involved a high-profile target from another country. He stayed on a large ship, away from any ports for safety. I infiltrated the ship. He was sleeping. I pulled out a gun and pointed it at his head. It should have been an easy kill..."

The Japanese teen looked up again, his eyes flashing. In the light they looked strange. "What stopped you?"

Jason sighed. Even after all that he knew, and all that had happened, he hated looking back at that mission. It took him a long time to admit why, even to himself: Shame. He should have been a professional. He should have killed his target. All the deprogramming he could do to himself couldn't seem to erase the disappointment that he couldn't pull that trigger. And yet, at the same time, he knew it had been a defining point in his life, and he did not regret it for an instant.

"His daughter," he replied, no longer really looking at Kenshin or the TARDIS. His eyes glazed over at the memory of the little, dark-skinned head and large brown eyes that turned to look up at him. He couldn't take away the innocence from those eyes. "She'd fallen asleep on his chest. The rest of his family was there with him too. I couldn't submit them to that."

Kenshin remained silent, listening intently.

After a long pause, Jason continued. "I barely escaped. My target woke as I ran. He managed to shoot me and I fell overboard. A fishing boat picked me up and helped me. I couldn't remember anything."

At that, the teen's eyes widened. "Nothing at all?"

Jason nodded curtly. "I could still speak several languages and remembered most of my training, but I couldn't remember who I was.

"Eventually I traced my origin back to the government of my country. That's when I started to remember things. I re-discovered my line of work, and what I had to run from." He snorted softly, no mirth in his voice whatsoever. "Where I'm from, you don't just walk away."

Again, Kenshin said nothing, but he shifted uncomfortably.

Jason continued. "It took several years before I remembered everything. During that time they were almost always there, chasing us."

"Us?" Kenshin asked.

The assassin knew he didn't have to answer, but he did anyway. It was high time he moved on, and he knew this would help. "They took her away from me," he whispered, more to himself than to his audience. "I should have died instead. That's when I decided to stop running and eliminate them."

Kenshin's face had gone very pale, and at those last words, his eyes widened again. Obviously he knew the feat of fighting a government. He suspected the vague comments about Marie had had their toll on the kid too. He was obviously still healing from losing his love too.

"Did you succeed?" Kenshin asked.

Jason shook his head. "Yes...and no."

"I see," Kenshin muttered. They stood there for several seconds, lost in their own thoughts before the redhead looked back at Jason and bowed again. "Thank you for telling me this, Mister Jason."

For just a moment, Jason felt something he hadn't felt for years. The barest twinge tugged at his mouth. He shrugged to acknowledge the kid's thanks and turned to look back at the hall he'd been about to turn into. "I'm going to finish profiling this ship."

"I should accompany you. It would be advantageous and more efficient if we both search." With that, Kenshin brushed past him and into the hall. They'd gone no more than two steps when a voice called out from behind them.

"There you two are," the Doctor said. "I need your help."

"Our help?" Kenshin asked. Jason simply raised an eyebrow.

"Yes," the alien said, looking rather serious. "I need you two to..." he paused, looking Kenshin in the eyes. "What happened to you?" The Doctor reached out to grab the teen's astonished chin. Jason was surprised the kid didn't draw his sword to chop that hand off. Alien or not, no one should move towards an assassin like that.

Jason followed the Doctor's gaze none the less, and blinked in surprise. The twinge of strange light he'd seen in Kenshin's eyes earlier was now far more visible. He'd been so caught up in his story that he hadn't noticed, but the kid's eyes had changed from a bright blue-violet to a harsh amber.

The questioning (and somewhat panicked for an assassin) look Kenshin shot at Jason practically begged for an explanation. It didn't take long for Jason to drag out a mirror (he'd always made it a point to carry one as they could come in rather useful) and hand it to him. To the kid's credit, he didn't scream or run or even drop the mirror out of shock. He simply stared with an open jaw at his small reflection.

"Well," the Doctor muttered as he rubbed the back of his head. "This complicates things."

"It's true. I've become a demon..."

"'It's true'? What's true?" The Doctor asked, sounding strangely curious and giddy for the situation.

Kenshin's voice dropped to a whisper, and his eyes glazed over. "They called me a demon. 'The red-haired demon', 'The Kyoto Demon', I earned many names. The most common was 'Hitokiri Battousai', but they were all names befitting a demon."

The Doctor's eyebrows shot up. "Really?" he asked, sounding awed and shocked at the same time, as if he'd just found out a legend was really true.

"Even you, a man from another planet, have heard of me." Jason really felt sorry for him. He sounded utterly depressed.

"Oh," the alien waved his hand in the air, "don't fool yourself. I know because I like Earth. But..." he looked Kenshin up and down as if seeing something completely new and yet familiar at the same time. Jason wondered how he managed to pull that off. "To meet a legend such as yourself, even if it only is local legend," he grinned, "that's one reason I time travel."

The kid blinked in surprise. "Time travel?"

"Okay," Jason interjected, "so what now?"

"Right," the Doctor stood up rather suddenly. "I need to make sure these are working." He pulled out a jewel. "And to do that, I need your help."

"And what about him?" the assassin nodded towards a still obviously shocked teenager.

The Doctor glanced down at the boy, then back up at Jason, eyes smiling. "He's going to help me." Jason wasn't impressed and his expression let the Doctor know it.

"You're a load of laughs," the Doctor muttered. "It's nothing to worry about."

"Then why did his eyes change?"

"Really, it's nothing."

Kenshin's eyes shot up, looking a little too hopeful.

The Doctor ignored the silent plea for more information and set a gem in the teen's hand instead. "It's been enhanced. If you can't understand us anymore, then it's working." Kenshin's face twisted in confusion.

"It means that the telepathic field generated by the TARDIS is being blocked," Jason supplied.

"I was about to say that," the Doctor said, almost pouting.

Kenshin continued to look a them in confusion. "What are you saying? You speak gibberish. Isn't that English?"

"Why can we understand him?" Jason asked the Doctor.

The dark-haired man seemed like he was ignoring him for a moment as he reached down to pluck the gem out of Kenshin's hand. "The TARDIS is still translating for us."

"I understand you now," Kenshin said, eying the gem the alien had given him warily.

"Right, it's time to go!"

"Go where?" Kenshin asked again, standing up slowly and looking utterly confused.

That slightly insane grin spread over the Doctor's face. "To save the world. Come on!" He nodded towards the door before turning and running through it.

Kenshin and Jason watched after him for several moments before Kenshin spoke up. "We should be mindful of his mental state."

Jason didn't answer, but followed Kenshin back into the larger, main control area. Kenshin was right. The Doctor definitely had some mental issues...well, at least according to human standards. It was obvious to both humans that the man had a past, and it wasn't pretty.

As they made their way through the halls of the TARDIS, Jason wondered if the question "What have I gotten myself into?" would ever leave his mind ag


	6. Planning

"Doctor," Jason spoke up as he walked towards the man. The Doctor, who had been shrugging on his trench coat as he babbled on about one thing or another, paused in his tirade and looked at the former assassin.

"What?"

Jason nodded to the dampening gems in the Doctor's hand. "If those things block the TARDIS, how are we all going to communicate out there?"

The alien thought for a moment, before his mouth scrunched up, displeased. "Right, forgot about that."

"Can you somehow make it exclusive to the TARDIS's signal?"

The Doctor suddenly looked indignant. "Oh, listen to you, trying to sound so intelligent." Jason's expression, if anything, became drier, but the Doctor either didn't notice, or didn't care. He did, however, continue. "Sorting out the different telepathic signals of any single entity is nearly impossible given the time frame we have."

"So we will not be able to understand each other once we leave?" Kenshin asked, not happy with the idea himself.

The Doctor glanced between the two, grinned, and pulled out the sonic screwdriver. He fiddled with it for a moment, then pointed it at one of the gems. Then he handed the gem to Kenshin. "Can you still understand me?"

Kenshin cocked his head. "It is more difficult somehow, but yes, I can."

Jason raised an eyebrow at the Doctor. "I thought it was nearly impossible."

"It is." The alien just grinned and modified another one before throwing it to Jason, then turned toward the door, grabbing a large thermos on his way. "Come on!"

"Wait," Jason started forward. "I need to go get that overcoat and pants from before."

"Overcoat?" The Doctor asked. "Oh, the gi and hakama. You won't need that now. We won't be trying to blend in."

"And what about him?" Kenshin interjected, nodding towards the boy they'd rescued who was still laying in the corner covered by the blanket.

"I set up a protocol that will warn me if he wakes up. Are you two going to stand around asking questions all day, or are we going to go?" Without waiting for an answer, he ran down the metal ramp and up to the TARDIS doors. He took just a moment to put the gem on the back of his neck and then threw open the doors and rushed outside.

Unimpressed, Jason didn't move from his spot, simply watching the man's show of theatrics for several seconds. Kenshin passing him finally drew his attention.

"We should follow, Jason-san," Kenshin said, his voice now heavily accented.

'Jason-san?' he wondered to himself. Then, figuring it had something to do with the gem and Kenshin's suddenly noticeable accent, he nodded curtly, to acknowledge that he would follow, and then trailed the younger man out of the TARDIS.

xXx

"What's with the thermos?" Jason couldn't help but ask. They'd been traipsing through the forest (he couldn't help but think 'towards certain doom') back to town for several minutes. Why they couldn't take the main roads was beyond Jason, but it didn't hinder them much, so they just followed the alien.

The Doctor shrugged. "Nothing's better for the body than a good cup of tea."

Jason couldn't help but look at the Doctor like he'd gone insane. "So you live in England when you're here on Earth?"

"Yes, usually. Why do you ask?"

"Just between your accent and the tea obsession—"

"Oi," the Doctor frowned. "It regulates my internal systems. Good for the hearts."

"Hearts?" Jason blinked. "How many do you have?"

"Just two."

"Two?"

The Doctor shot the other man a smile. "Better than the Crangalans. They have to have six working just to keep the extra appendages from going numb."

Jason decided he didn't want to know.

"Okay, then what are we going to do when we find that thing?" he asked.

The Doctor looked down at the same remote-like instrument in his hands that he'd used to find the thing the first time. "Well, I was hoping to run into the Demmelfka on our way to town, but the strengthened inhibitors are creating a thin telepathic bubble that's interfering with this." He waved the device around a little.

"Why don't we just go back to the cave?"

"After taking a wound like that it won't go back to the cave. It'll be on the hunt."

For the first time since they'd left the TARDIS, Kenshin spoke up, worried. "What kind of a hunt? The townspeople?"

"Oh, I doubt it'll have taken anyone yet. It has very particular tastes."

Still looking grim, Kenshin asked, "Tastes?"

For a moment, the Doctor looked as if he were considering whether it was worth going through the trouble of telling them. He must have decided it was worth it, because he began to explain. "Every psychic signature, every thought, has a certain caliber—a texture or flavor. Thoughts make up human souls, so every soul has a 'taste' to them more unique than thumb prints. The Demmelfka consumes those thoughts and converts them into energy just like our bodies convert food into energy." He hesitated as they climbed over a particularly large set of exposed tree roots.

"Then what does this one feed on?" Jason asked.

The alien paused. "Dependence, or reliance if you will."

"What do you mean?" For some reason, Kenshin's voice sounded more unsteady than Jason had ever heard it before. He looked back, noting the kid's amber eyes had fixed with a strange kind of "need to know" look on the Doctor's back.

"That's why it went after people who were very old, very young," the Doctor continued, "or mentally challenged, because they would need more support from the people around them. They're more dependent."

"I am not dependent on anyone," the hitokiri insisted. Jason almost started. Right, the thing had seemed to like his "taste". The kid sounded way too defensive for that to not have hit close to home, although Jason wondered what on earth someone with his reflexes and knowledge would need. Then again, dependence could mean more than just the physical aspect the Doctor had eluded to.

Then, of course, the thing had seemed fixated on the Doctor. Jason had to wonder who the Doctor had relied on so heavily as to attract the thing's almost complete attention.

The Doctor didn't answer, nor did he turn around. Jason felt relief flood him when the alien didn't take that discussion further. Kenshin was not ready to talk about it, whatever 'it' was. It had to have hurt him deeply, and Jason wondered whether the kid would be able to heal from wounds obviously inflicted so harshly on his soul.

"Okay," Jason decided to change the subject. "So how did you plan on stopping it?"

The Doctor paused and turned around, holding up a fourth Gem, walking backwards as he did so. Vaguely, the assassin wondered how he didn't trip over the uneven ground. "This. It will inhibit their ability to feed as well as some of the higher functions without causing permanent damage. Then, maybe, we can talk."

Jason almost stumbled. Almost. "Wait, you still want to talk with that thing?" he asked, not believing his ears. After what the Demmelfca had done to them?

The tall alien read the look on Jason's face and scowled, turning to walk normally as he spoke. "It's only doing what's instinctual. If I can avoid killing it, I will."

His words struck home. Jason could literally hear the unspoken, _"you of all people should understand that"_ tacked on at the end, and judging from Kenshin's face, he could as well. Then the Japanese teen's face hardened.

"But it's just a creature! A harmful one at that!"

Jason hadn't realized the Doctor could move that fast. He quickly rounded on both of them, his glare easily every bit as hard as Kenshin's. "That _thing_ is not a spirit or youkai from your myths," he turned his glare full on to Jason, "Nor is it some sort of diseased animal that needs to be _dealt with_. It's a living, breathing life form just in the beginning stages of its intelligent evolution. Killing it could wipe out an entire future race, and I won't do it unless I have no other choice!"

In the few seconds after the Doctor had finished, Kenshin looked smaller and more frail than Jason had thought possible. He didn't look 18, or even 14. Suddenly, he looked like a young child being chastised by an adult.

Jason could suddenly see him thinking ' _I can't believe I just suggested that'_ , and suddenly realized just how much the kid regretted his lifestyle. It wasn't like he hadn't known that before, but the magnitude of just how badly Himura Kenshin did not want to kill suddenly hit him like a ton of bricks.

It seemed some tricks were never unlearned.

Jason had gotten out of the business mainly because of the disgust he'd felt when he'd realized just who he was after the amnesia. That, and the fact that they were trying to kill him and his girlfriend. Sweet, innocent Marie. Not for the first time, a thought crossed his mind. If Treadstone would have wanted him back—had accepted that mistakes happen and given him another chance, would he have gone? If it would have kept her alive? If it would have meant he didn't have to keep running and hiding? Yes, he hated killing people, and regretted it often, but to an extent where he wouldn't do it again if it meant an easier, comparatively safer life?

He shied away from the answer to that question, shamed, and couldn't help the blossoming respect he had for Kenshin as it grew to new heights.

Pushing the uncomfortable thoughts to the back of his mind, he forced himself to focus on the Doctor's last statement. The least he could do was help the kid out a bit. This boy that he felt such a strange kinship towards.

"So you'll let an entire town— _if not the world—_ die because you didn't want to kill one creature?" he asked quietly but firmly.

If anything, the Doctor grew even more incensed. "Not just one, what about all of its children? There are at least 20 baby aliens living in that field. Should I kill them too? This is why I hate working with Americans! You all think you're so open minded, but it's all about killing and winning."

That hurt Jason more than he thought it would.

He was about to answer back, when he sensed Kenshin shift. Out of the corner of his eye, he glanced at the kid. Even with his eyes hidden behind that mop of red-hair, Jason could see that he wanted them to stop arguing.

"Jason-san," he said. "Thank you, but the Doctor is right. He is not even apart of this world, so why should he bear the responsibility of taking so many lives to preserve this village? It is unfair to say the least."

He looked up, the amber eyes suddenly seemed dull and sad in his otherwise expressionless face. Then he bowed to both of them.

"Jason-san, you are also not of this culture, and as such you also have no cause to do anything. I thank you both for everything you have done for me, and for this village. I shall take my leave now."

"Just hold on a moment," the Doctor stepped out, blocking Kenshin's path. "You're not going to just go and kill it!"

Kenshin's eyes hardened. "If your talking will not do any good, as we have seen it will not, then someone must bear this burden. I have done it before, I will do so again."

Those words and the way they'd been spoken scared Jason more than the idea of Treadstone and Blackbriar being somehow revived together. Before he knew what he was doing, words broke away from his mouth.

"Shut up, brat." He didn't say it harshly, but it had the desired effect. Startled, both Kenshin and the Doctor looked over at him. "Do you honestly think you're the only one here who has those kinds of stains on his past? You know I do, and I'm betting the Doctor here has had to make some pretty nasty decisions before." The red-head glanced up at the alien as if to confirm. The Doctor didn't say anything.

"But why would you care about us? It isn't any of your business," Kenshin insisted.

"Why not?" The Doctor asked, once again the casual person they'd come to know.

Kenshin stared at the man in frustration. "I told you before, you are not of this world! Why would—"

"My world's gone."

Kenshin's mouth snapped shut, eyes fixed on the Doctor. Jason followed suit. It was the way he'd said it, with such a blank face but a voice so full of sorrow it was almost tangible that practically commanded their attention.

"Earth is the closest thing I have to a home now, and I am not going to let what happened to my world happen here. But that doesn't mean we should just kill it. We'll talk to it, again." And just like that the discussion ended.

He was just like them, Jason realized. He wasn't a hired assassin, but he'd at least been the cause of more death than Jason could probably imagine, and he doubted that was only on one occasion. In that moment, his respect for the Doctor skyrocketed, and the alien's actions became more clear than ever.

"After that, I'm taking you home," the Doctor continued, nodding at Jason who felt a stab of disappointment. Really, he wondered what he'd expected. It wasn't like he wanted to stick around for a while in that impossible box or anything. No, he was upset because he'd finally found someone he felt he could trust again, and had ticked him off to a point where he thought Jason was irredeemable. It had been a long time since he'd felt anything like that.

For a moment, all three of them stood in an uncomfortable silence before the Doctor turned around agan and began striding purposefully towards town.

Kenshin looked torn between following him and stopping him by any means necessary.

"Hey," Jason said to the kid, his voice low, "just because it's your problem doesn't mean you can't have help."

"But-"

"No," Jason shook his head. "We're here, we're helping, that's that. Got it?"

Not even waiting for a response, he turned around and stalked after the Doctor. He didn't miss the grateful expression that washed over Kenshin's face, though.

"Jason-san," the kid hurried to catch up with him. "Will you distract the Doctor while I take care of the alien?"

Jason felt his expression fall. Really, what kind of society would shove that kind of responsibility on a kid?

"Look," he heard himself say, "I think the Doctor needs this. He needs to know that he tried as hard as he could to stop death. Any death."

"But why?"

The ex-assassin shrugged, watching the doctor's frame as it continued to move on ahead.

"Sometimes, just not killing isn't enough."

"What?"

Jason looked over at Kenshin. The kid watched him with large, fearful, yellow eyes. "You regret your past, right? And you want to make up for it." Kenshin nodded slowly. "Well," Jason gestured towards the tall, thin man ahead, "So does he. So he's looking for a way to try and make sure everybody lives. I think it's his way of trying to redeem himself, in his own eyes if not in everyone else's."

Kenshin walked along beside him in silence for several seconds.

"You suggest we help him talk to It," he finally spoke.

The former assassin shrugged. "This is the first time in a long time I've found I can believe in someone. I'm willing to fight for that." Because he had the feeling that inevitably they would end up fighting.

"I see," Kenshin responded, then after another pause, he nodded firmly. "Then I shall too."

Jason returned the nod. "Oh, and one more thing," he said. Kenshin turned his yellow eyes back on the older assassin. "If anything has to die, you're not doing it."

"But-"

"No," he said, sending his best glare down at the kid. "Kids shouldn't have to kill. No one should."

"I've already stained my hands," Kenshin said quietly, looking down.

"So? The point is to not let it happen again."

Kenshin raised an eyebrow, looking up at Jason with a disbelieving expression. It looked strange on his face, like it wasn't supposed to be there. "Aren't you going to do the same thing?"

"I'm older."

Kenshin looked down again, this time with a resigned smile. "Thank you, Jason-san," he said softly. They fell into a companionable silence, following the Doctor through the darkening night.

When the darkened town finally came into view, the Doctor stopped and knelt behind some bushes.

"What's the plan?" Jason asked as he and Kenshin squatted down beside the alien's thin form.

"The plan is you two stay here."

Blinking, Kenshin and Jason exchanged glances, then turned back to him, disbelieving.

"What?" they asked in unison.

"The last thing we need is you two popping in, ready to kill everything."

"We won't." The Doctor paused and glanced up at Kenshin's tone. The boy looked at him, jaw set firmly in place. "We won't do anything you don't tell us to do."

"And what if it attacks you again?" The Doctor retorted. "Can you honestly say that you would not draw that sword?"

Kenshin looked slightly taken aback, but his face hardened quickly. "I cannot."

"There, you see. You two-"

"Which is why my blade is reversed. You have my word, Doctor. I will not try to kill it unless you tell me to."

The Doctor paused for a moment, looking Kenshin up and down. Then his face scrunched in on itself, making him look like a father who'd just given into a child throwing a tantrum. "Oh, alright. But I have your word!" Then he turned to Jason. "You too."

Jason shrugged. "My bullets don't seem to affect it anyway."

"Promise."

Without hesitation, Jason nodded.

"Alright," the Doctor sighed. "It will be drawn towards the largest cluster of people, which is this town. Now we need to skirt the area between here and the cave. If you find anything," he tossed two small objects to Kenshin and Jason, who both caught it easily, "call me."

"Cell phones?" Jason raised an eyebrow. He'd expected something more...high-tech.

The Doctor must have caught the unimpressed note in his voice because he immediately defended himself. "Oi, what's wrong with cell phones? Besides, these aren't your typical cell phone. They can call across time and space."

Kenshin looked down at the small object. "How?" he asked, looking it over thoroughly.

"You just push this button," the Doctor reached over and pressed the send button. Kenshin jumped as it lit up in his hand.

"It holds fire inside?"

"I guess you wouldn't know a lot about electricity," Jason muttered.

A look of recognition came over Kenshin's face. "Ah, so this is electricity. I had heard it required enormous towers and much special equipment."

"Um, it's refined," the Doctor said. "Future technology. DON'T lose it."

"And how do I...'call' you?"

"You press 1, and then this button again."

Kenshin watched the screen as it lit up and said "calling" on it. Then the Doctor's phone rang out from his jacket pocket with the Beatles 'Ticket to Ride'.

"Seriously?" Jason asked.

"Oi," the Doctor said, defensively. Kenshin had jumped about a mile and a half, but the Doctor held one hand out placatingly and showed the still ringing phone to Kenshin. "Look, it's just telling me that I got a call."

"Oh," Kenshin said, still eying the thing warily.

"To end the call, press this button," the Doctor continued. "And that's all you need to know. Now, Kenshin, the locals know you, so I want you to go through the center of town. I'll skirt to the left, David to the right."

Jason just sighed, not even bothering to correct the Doctor this time.

"And remember, no killing! Or maiming if you can help it."

He turned and sauntered off into the night, leaving the two ex-assassins staring after him. Then they shot each other a look, and took off in their respective directions, leaving nothing but the wind blowing in the trees behind them.

xXx

Kenshin couldn't decide if he felt more surprised or horrified that he fell back into old habits so easily. He felt a bit rusty, bit it really hadn't taken long to remember how to move through the town unseen. He flitted through the shadows, across the rooftops and over the alleys of the small town like a ghost and almost found himself missing Kyoto with the rooftops clustered so closely together and large buildings to hide behind. Almost.

It took him longer than he would care to admit, but he was able to check most of the groups of houses that made up the center of town, and reached the other end in time to see the Doctor step onto the main road, looking down at the device in his hand.

"Doctor," Kenshin said as he slid down one side of a house before pushing off of the wall and flipping neatly to land several feet away from him. Calmly but quickly, he approached the man.

"Do you do that often?" The Doctor asked.

"Do what?" Kenshin cocked his head.

"The flippy-thing."

Kenshin briefly wondered if the Gem had begun to overpower the translator to a point where he couldn't understand normal words.

"Flippy-thing?"

"Yeah, over the roof tops, flipping around in the air."

Understanding brushed over Kenshin's mind. "It is common for an elite warrior to know such skills."

"I doubt that," the Doctor muttered under his breath.

"Did you find anything?" The former hitokiri asked, coming to a stop beside the taller form.

"No," the Doctor said, puzzled and obviously not pleased.

"You thought you would," Kenshin stated plainly. "That is why you took the side closest to the cave."

"Well I wasn't about to let you two-" A noise similar to those that sounded when the Doctor had shown Kenshin how to 'call' suddenly burst from the alien's pocket.

He fumbled through his jacket briefly before pulling out the phone and holding it up to his ear.

"Yes?"

"DOCTOR!" Kenshin's veins froze as he distinctly recognized Jason-san's voice. "I could use a little help here!"

"What?"

"I found it! It's attacking an old woman. She's unconscious! I don't know if-"

"No, no No NO!" The Doctor said, his voice gaining volume with every syllable. Without so much as a glance at Kenshin, he took off towards the side of town where Jason had been patrolling.

"Doctor! I'm open to ideas!"

"Just don't kill it!"

"Easier said than done!"

"You gave me your word!"

Jason-san's voice suddenly gained a sharp edge. "You said if we could help it! If I have to kill it to save her, I will!"

"David-"

"Jason-san," Kenshin said, coming as close to the Doctor as he could, and hoping the other person could hear him. "You are good at what you do. Now the point is to be good enough that you don't _have_ to kill. There is another way!"

Jason-san paused for a few moments before he came back over the line. "Fine, I'll figure it out. Just get here so you can talk to this thing, now!"

"Where are you?" the Doctor asked, sounding slightly subdued himself, and watching Kenshin with an unreadable expression.

"You don't have a homing device or something?"

"Satellites!"

"What?" Jason-san's voice sounded as confused as Kenshin felt.

"Think of the time period! There aren't any satellites and I'm not in the TARDIS!"

Kenshin found himself surprised at the level Jason-san's voice reached. "You have superior technology!"

"David..." The Doctor's voice warned.

"I don't know! It's a house by a large, red gate-like thing!"

Kenshin blinked. "I know where that is," he told the Doctor. "Follow me!"

"David, we're on our way!" The Doctor said.

"Good, because I—WHOA!" And the line went dead.

The Doctor looked down at the phone. "David? DAVID?" His fingers flew over the keys, probably attempting to 'call' Jason back. Kenshin heard yet another strange, ringing sound from it several times before an emotionless voice answered him, saying something about leaving a message.

"What is it?" Kenshin asked, slowing down somewhat so the Doctor could match his pace.

"Not good," The Doctor responded. "Come on!"

Nodding, Kenshin easily fell into step beside the Doctor as they hurried through the fields towards the local shrine.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks to Daricio for help with this chapter. :)


	7. Talking

It didn't escape Jason's notice that the Doctor had conveniently taken the side closest to the cave. Truthfully, he didn't expect to come across much, so the distant scream that shattered the night gave him a bit of a surprise before he broke into a run towards the sound.

An older woman kept screaming "Youkai! Youkai!" and she had to have a set of good lungs on her to reach his hearing from the distance he suspected she'd yelled from. It took at least five minutes at a dead sprint before the building came into view. It had a large, red gate-like archway above a path of stairs leading up to what looked like a normal building for these areas, if a little bigger.

However, most of the local shops didn't have a giant, glowing, misshapen orb-like thing hovering outside of their now destroyed buildings.

He whipped out the phone, pressed 1, and held it to his ear as he bounded up the stairs.

"Yes?"

"DOCTOR!" he yelled. "I could use a little help here!"

"What?" Great, the alien was on the verge of panicking from the tone of voice.

"I found it!" he yelled into the receiver as he reached the top of the stairs and observed the gruesome scene. "It's attacking an old woman. She's unconscious! I don't know if-"

"No, no No NO!" The Doctor cut him off.

Automatically, his hand reached for his guns, but he stopped himself. He'd promised...but at the expense of the woman's life? "Doctor! I'm open to ideas!"

"Just don't kill it!"

"Easier said than done!"

"You gave me your word!"

What did he expect? He was not about to put that _thing's_ life over the woman's. "You said if we could help it! If I have to kill it to save her, I will!"

"David-" The Doctor's voice started, an urgency and warning behind it that Jason couldn't quite understand. Did he really put such a violent life form above an innocent one?

Then Kenshin's voice came over the other end, interrupting the Doctor. "Jason-san," he said, his voice sounding distant, but clear. "The point is to be good enough that you don't _have_ to kill. There is another way!"

For a moment, Jason felt a stab of betrayal. The kid was taking the Doctor's side? _Against_ humans? Why?

Then the words Jason had spoken to Kenshin earlier echoed through his mind. _"This is the first time in a long time I've found that I can believe in someone in such a short period of time. I'm willing to fight for that."_

He grit his teeth, mentally hitting himself for giving in. "Fine, I'll figure it out. Just get here so you can talk to this thing, now!"

"Where are you?" the Doctor asked, sounding much calmer. Jason balked incredulously.

"You don't have a homing device or something?" he yelled.

"Satellites!"

"What?" Jason couldn't help but ask as he finally reached the top step, only slightly winded. What did satellites have to do with anything?

"Think of the time period! There aren't any satellites and I'm not in the TARDIS!"

No way. Something that simple? Seriously? "You have superior technology!" He heard himself yelling.

"David..." The Doctor's voice warned again, but Jason just realized he'd broken the #1 rule of assassination: never let the target know you're there. The main body didn't so much as twitch, but somehow, Jason could tell the thing had heard him, and the leftover tentacles suddenly moved to the side between Jason and the thing.

"I don't know!" he said loudly, hoping he didn't sound too panicked. "It's a house by a large, red gate-like thing!"

Over the line, he heard Kenshin say something, but couldn't quite make it out, but apparently it made sense to the Doctor because he came back on, talking in a fast but strangely reassuring (and, if he were honest, rather soothing) voice.

"David, we're on our way!".

"Good, because I—WHOA!" He barely saw one of the lightning fast tentacles coming at him, and almost didn't dodge in time. It clipped him as it shot by, whizzing past his head at a speed that probably would have taken it off if he hadn't ducked. The phone (and consequently his hand) weren't so lucky.

The blow threw his arm back, and he winced at the sharp twinge of pain from his elbow and shoulder. The phone shot off into the dark somewhere behind him.

Of course.

A weak, shuddering sound from the woman drew his attention. It only took a moment for his face to harden as he reached back and grabbed his gun. Then he pointed it at the alien.

This would end tonight.

xXx

Both Kenshin and the Doctor heard the echo of gunshots and froze in their steps, neither one caring that they now stood in the shin-deep water of a rice field. Kenshin glanced over at the Doctor, and took a step back. The utter betrayal on the man's face wrenched at his very soul.

This wasn't the first time this man had felt that kind of pain.

The image of a diary as blood dropped onto the page from the wound in his cheek flashed through his mind. The wound hadn't bled for months before that...

He quickly shook the memory from his mind, ignoring how his knees suddenly shook weakly. Thankfully, the Doctor cursing under his breath drew him away from that train of thought, and he found himself scrambling to catch up as the alien took off in the direction they'd been heading again.

"No, no, no, no, no," he seemed to chant again, sounding more and more desperate.

For a moment, disappointment jolted through Kenshin. He'd thought better of Jason-san. Then again, he of all people knew that when one went into battle, they fought as they knew, with reactions and instincts ingrained into them. Still, he'd thought that the older ex-assassin of all people...

The rice fields ended at a line of trees and they flew through it. Not moments later, they stumbled onto an old, stone staircase. Without pausing, they shot up the stairs, Kenshin easily overtaking the Doctor, who had begun to sound rather winded. Actually, Kenshin was surprised it had taken this long. Normally, only extensive training could keep someone running for the amount of time they had.

When he reached the landing at the top of the stairs, he paused, taking in the scene. Off to one side, an old priestess lay slumped on the ground next to what was left of the shrine and building. The thing hovered on the opposite side of the clearing, near a grove of trees, its attention seemingly focused on something. Kenshin couldn't see what, but he could guess easily enough.

Wheezing, the Doctor finally caught up, and Kenshin decided to take the lead for once.

"See to the old woman," he nodded off to the side. A soft click sounded as he readied his sword to be pulled with his thumb. "I'll go after Jason-san."

"Kenshin!" The Doctor grabbed his arm. The redhead looked back, and seeing the look on the man's face, he couldn't help but try to smile reassuringly (although from the Doctor's reaction, he didn't succeed well).

"I won't kill it," he said, then took off towards the egg-like alien. Sure enough, Jason-san had been caught in the alien's dry-looking, cracked tentacles, and hung in the air, almost completely wrapped in said appendages. Kenshin could barely see his face.

He used the slow-moving appendages that weren't in the tangle around the older man as a springboard to launch himself in the air, and pulled out his sword, slashing down in a Ryu Tsu Sen with a force that would have easily cut straight through the thick flesh like a knife through tofu if he hadn't been using the blunt edge of his sakabatō. It didn't cut. That didn't mean it didn't hurt, and the thing immediately dropped Jason before backing off to nurse its wounds with a high-pitched cry of pain. Fortunately it wasn't too loud, as Kenshin couldn't cover his ears quickly enough.

The teen knelt next to Jason-san, grabbed an arm and with some effort, hefted the larger man over his shoulder. Then he turned and took off as quickly as he could with his new burden. He reached the Doctor and the old woman and let Jason-san carefully down to the ground. It didn't look like the Doctor had done much more than check her over, though, as she looked as unresponsive as ever. Kenshin gave the Doctor a funny look. Anyone he knew would have at least tried to let her lie more comfortably rather than leaver her in the position where she'd simply fallen.

"How is he?" the Doctor asked as Kenshin crouched at his side, making sure to take an angle where he could keep both the Doctor and the other Alien in view.

"Breathing," the former Hitokiri responded bluntly.

"Doctor?" Jason-san's lips moved, causing both of the other men to jump.

"I'm here," the Doctor responded.

"Better...appreciate," Jason-san said. "Didn't kill it."

The Doctor's expression soured a little. "What were the gun shots?"

"Needed...a dis...traction."

"What kind of a distraction? Why would it come after you?" Kenshin asked, his voice filled with confusion. "Why would it not finish its meal, even if you did antagonize it?"

Jason-san didn't answer him. That was when Kenshin looked at the woman who looked rather healthy considering. She seemed only to be in a deep, peaceful sleep.

"He's right," the Doctor said, catching on.

"Jason-san," Kenshin said, his voice stern, "where is the gem that Doctor-san gave you?"

"What?" The Doctor's face had gone just a little pale. "He wouldn't. You wouldn't..." he began search Jason for the inhibitor.

"Doctor-san," Kenshin spoke softly, holding up the woman's hand. Just inside the palm of her hand, right beneath the thumb, sat the gem the Doctor had given Jason.

The Doctor stared for a moment, then looked over at the alien that had stopped writhing in pain. It also had not approached them. Instead, it just sat there in an eerie silence on the other side of the stone clearing. Almost faster than Kenshin could watch (almost), the Doctor's hand shot into his pocket, further than should be possible. When he dragged his hand out, he held the four gems they had used earlier.

"But those aren't strong enough," Kenshin protested.

"Better than nothing," the Doctor commented hurridely, looking down at the ex-assassin with an unreadable expression. Just as he was about to place it on Jason-san's skin, the former assassin's hand shot up and grabbed the Doctor's wrist, both to his and Kenshin's surprise.

"Don't," Jason-san said, his voice still strained.

"Why not?" Kenshin asked, a touch of anger in his voice. "It will kill you, Jason-san!"

"Because," he said, opening his eyes and glancing at Kenshin before his gaze shot over to the Doctor. "I'm talking."

xXx

It was only after Jason had rushed the thing and slammed the gem inhibitor in the woman's hand that he realized exactly what the Doctor had planned on doing. He almost kicked himself for not seeing it earlier. That crazy alien was planning on exposing himself to this thing again, just so that he could talk to it. Right about then is when it hit Jason as to just how much saving these lives meant to the Doctor. And for just a moment, he was able to put his bias aside and see the alien creature for what it really was, and what he found was just that: a creature. A living, breathing (so to speak) being that needed to live, and would do everything it could to survive.

Jason also found himself able to see the dilemma the Doctor seemed to be in. If he kept the alien alive, it would potentially kill more humans. If he killed the alien, as it was looking after its young, then how many of those lives would be lost?

It was only a moment, but for that instant Jason understood just how much life in general meant to the Doctor. As the alien began to scream in that high-pitched shriek and thrash around at not being able to finish its meal, he also wondered why the Doctor cared so much. What could he possibly have gone through to give him such an outlook?

The alien dropped the woman onto the ground in a heap, and began groping blindly in Jason's general direction, but it didn't seem to have any eyes, and probably couldn't do much outside of hearing and hunting mentally. Fortunately, from what the Doctor had said, it needed to establish a telepathic link first. Even though it still moved its limbs lighting fast, Jason found that he could fairly easily dodge and stay out of range of the gigantic tentacles if he didn't let his guard down.

The Doctor would be here soon. They said they were on their way, and he doubted the man would have said that if he didn't know one way or another where this place was. Letting himself fall back into old habits, Jason danced across the square, always just out of reach of the alien.

He wasn't exactly sure what made him do it. Maybe it was the sound of footsteps on the stairs, or maybe it was just catching sight of the fallen woman and wanting all of this to stop. Maybe it was the idea that of the man who had saved his life when he'd dragged him into that impossible box putting his own life on the line again while Jason just sat by and watched.

Or maybe he was just insane.

He didn't dodge. Well, not really. The tentacle shot out, and he only braced himself as it came on. Stepping just barely to the side so as to avoid decapitation, he didn't so much as wince at the sting on his cheek as it shot by his face. It hadn't hit him when it had flipped Jason's phone out of his hand before, it had only breezed by him. This...this was different because ha needed some sort of physical contact.

It worked.

Almost immediately, he felt the thing's presence in his mind, heavy and oppressing as it honed in on him. He wasn't sure what he'd been expecting, but this went well beyond his expectations, and he couldn't help but let out a scream of pain as he clutched his head. Vaguely he felt himself fall to his knees and the tentacles homing in on him, wrapping their rough skin around him.

He shuddered at the touch, but forced himself to not pull away.

_You take it away!_ It said. Well, thought. Jason didn't know exactly how he understood it, as it seemed to think more in pictures and ideas than in an actual language. Maybe it was the TARDIS? _Why you take it away?_ It screamed. Jason winced at the force it projected into his head. _You hurt me! I kill you!_

_NO!_ Jason thought back as firmly as it could. _You feed off of us! Did you expect us to just take it? To just let you? Would you do that if we did the same thing to you? Or your children?_

It shrieked and closed the tentacles around him tighter. Somehow he could feel his energy draining into the thing. It wasn't pleasant, but it didn't stop him.

_We will fight you for our survival, and we will win! There are thousands...millions of people out there who will fight you! And they will kill you!_

_We stronger! We better! We win!_

_No, you won't._

It might have been the way he thought it, with a touch of sadness and finality. He knew what humans could do...what they would do. They might keep the aliens alive, but he could picture them being put in tanks at testing facilities as they studied the properties of telepathy and the ability to absorb energy through a mental link. He knew how horrible it would be, and that that was the fate that would await the survivors. Humans might not have tanks yet, but it would be less than a century before they did. And they already had cannons, and guns, and swords...

No, there was just no feasible way Jason could see that these few creatures could win. He felt a touch of relief at that thought. He briefly wondered if the alien could see all of his thoughts too before it started screaming out loud.

_Pain! Hurt! Again! Hate!_ It thought as Jason felt his body slump to the ground while alien backed off. Then he felt someone rather slight heft his arm over their shoulder and run away. A few seconds later, he heard the Doctor's voice.

"How is he?"

"Breathing," the more tenor sound of Kenshin said right next to him as the former hitokiri lay him gently on the ground.

"Doctor?" Jason managed to open his mouth with some effort. He wondered why it seemed so hard. Had the alien drained him that fast? His body felt like lead.

"I'm here," the Doctor responded.

"Better...appreciate," he muttered. Seriously, he hadn't been this out of it since he'd gone through poison resistance training. "Didn't kill it."

The Doctor's expression soured a little. "What were the gunshots?"

Jason felt a touch affronted. Did the man really think Jason would go back on his word? "Needed...a dis...traction."

"What kind of a distraction? Why would it come after you?" Kenshin asked, his quiet voice filled with confusion. "Why would it not finish its meal, even if you did antagonize it?"

Jason didn't answer him. The kid was too sharp for his own good. What was he supposed to say? That he'd just stand by and watch as the old woman died? Even to him, that sounded a touch arrogant and conceited.

"He's right." And the stupid, human-like alien was too sharp too. Not that he'd expected less.

"Jason-san," Kenshin said, his voice stern, "where is the gem Doctor-san gave you?"

"What?" The Doctor's responded, just the slightest touch of surprise and panic to his otherwise firm tone. "He wouldn't. You wouldn't..." that last part had been directed at him, but he didn't care. The Doctor began to lift up Jason's hands to look them over and turn his head to search his neck.

_You know you're not going to find it, Doctor,_ Jason thought.

_Who that?_ The alien's presence had never really left, but now it made itself known again. Jason could still feel it seething and burning with anger at the pain they'd caused it, but he could also feel curiosity and confusion at their actions overpowering that hatred.

_He's the Doctor,_ Jason responded. _You've seen into his mind, so why do you ask?_

_I not understand._

He could feel a great deal of frustration from the alien.

_What don't you understand?_ Jason felt his own frustration rising.

_Why? Why he care? He not mother or child. Why?_

Oh.

Jason paused, when he felt a hand reach towards him. He heard Kenshin say something about those being weaker, and the Doctor saying it was better than nothing. Wait, the gems from before!

He put as much effort into moving his hand as he could, and caught the Doctor's hand, despite his sluggish movements.

"Don't," he said.

"Why not?" Kenshin asked angrily. "It will kill you, Jason-san!"

"Because," he said as he forced his eyes open and met Kenshin's yellow irises before he shot a pointed look over to the Doctor. "I'm talking."

Both of them stared at him in shock.

"You're talking? With that?" The Doctor asked, incredulous.

"Jason-san..." Kenshin said, his voice soft and his face unreadable.

"If you care so much...about saving every...life that you can," Jason said, hating how weak he sounded, "then I...figured I...could help."

_You know,_ he thought to the alien, _I...don't know. I don't know why this man cares so much, but he does. I don't understand it either. I know you can feel that._

"David..." The Doctor said sadly.

_I not understand!_ It shrieked loudly as if to accentuate the thought. Jason winced.

"Jason-san!" Kenshin said.

_I don't either!_ He shot back. The alien paused at his tone. _All I know is that he does, and he means it. He doesn't want you to die any more than he wants me to. He says he can help you find a way, and take you away from this place, then he can._

_But it not same food._

_Yeah,_ the Doctor had said something like that. _He said that you feed on dependency or something like that, but is that because you want to? Or because you have to?_

_I not understand._

_Can you survive on other things? Other feelings or whatever?_ Jason felt that familiar frustration rise again and decided to elaborate. _Things that don't have thoughts like me._

_It hard._

_But you can?_

It didn't answer.

_So it's hard,_ Jason thought, deciding to take that silence as a 'yes'. _But isn't that better than being dead?_

Again, it didn't answer for a long time.

"David, we need to cut you off from the feeding link," he heard the Doctor say. "You'll die if we don't."

_Look, they're going to block me._

_They take you away too!_

_No_ ,Jason wasn't sure why he said that, but he continued with it anyway. _No, I'll be right here, but you won't be able to hear me. Look, just give the Doctor a chance. He'll do everything he can to make sure you survive._

_No_ ,It responded in the first sad tone Jason had heard. _I die._

_Wait, what?_

_I not go to next feeding ground. Too cold. I stay, I die._

He got the distinct picture of this thing traveling through space, from planet to planet. It must be immensely old.

_But you made it here!_

_Skin whole then._

A picture (well, more of a feeling, but more detached) of something stabbing into it. _I not fix it fast enough. Now it never will._

_The Doctor will find a way around that!_

_For children._

_What?_

Jason stopped, taken aback.

_I know I die soon. But want children safe._

"David, answer me," The Doctor broke through his thoughts.

"Not yet," Jason said. "I can handle it."

"David..."

"It's going to die," he blurted out. "When Kenshin...stabbed it. It can't go back...into space. It'll freeze. Skin broken."

"I can get around that if it wants to leave," the Doctor said. "I can take it wherever it wants to go!"

_You right. He care. Don't know why, but it true._ The alien's thoughts had taken on a somewhat calm, almost peaceful tone. _I not feed more. He take children. Make them safe._

"It...no, _she,"_ Jason said, giving the alien a distinction for the first time. "She says...she'll...leave people alone...if you...take the children. Make them safe."

"Done," the Doctor said immediately. "But we can still help her!" Jason felt a small smile touch his lips when the Doctor said 'her'.

_Can't. I not live long now._

"She...says you can't."

The Doctor's face hardened and he shot up, taking the inhibitor off of his hand as he did. Immediately Jason felt the Doctor's mind join the conversation. It felt strange, and he could only hear the man as if from a distance, but the peaceful, calm presence there none the less.

_I can help you!_

_No._

The alien sounded rather firm. _I try to live to see children to next feeding. That all. Came here to die. Now, you take them. I not have to._

_Don't give up,_ the Doctor said calmly but with an underlying current of desperation.

_They taste good._ It said, in a strangely thoughtful tone. _You make them taste good._

_What?_ The Doctor asked. Jason got the distinct impression that the larger alien wasn't referring to its children.

_You promise! You keep promise!_

Jason found himself somewhat surprised that she knew what a promise was. Then the Doctor yelling distracted him.

_No! NO NO NO!_ He yelled in his mind, and out loud, rushing towards the alien, but she didn't listen. Before the Doctor could reach her, she rose upwards.

_No more pain. Also keep promise. Best way._

_How do you know that?_

Jason asked, trying to ignore the blackness that crowded around his vision. For some reason, that seemed to be the one thought he could grasp onto, even with Kenshin calling out his name and shaking him.

_You show me. He show me. Don't understand, but like._

"What's happening?" Kenshin asked. Why did his voice sound so blurry? Like he was speaking through a wall.

"She's going to kill herself!" The Doctor said, running back. "I've got to do something!"

"Why would it kill itself?" Kenshin asked. "What are you going to do?"

"I've got to-"

"What about Jason-san?" The Doctor stopped. At least Jason thought it was the Doctor. It looked like him in a vague, blobbish kind of way. When had everything gotten so blurry?

"Here," the blob that was probably the Doctor reached down and put something on Jason's forehead. Almost instantaneously he felt better, like he didn't have to fight so hard to stay awake anymore. Funny, he hadn't even realized he'd been fighting.

"Go," he said to the human-like alien. "Get back...to the TARDIS. See if...you can do...something."

Kenshin looked down at him, his yellow eyes growing soft. "Jason-san..."

"Right!" The Doctor said, taking off. "Take care of him till I get back!" The Doctor yelled.

Kenshin watched the Doctor leave then turned to look back at Jason, completely confused.

"Don't worry, kid," Jason managed to get out. "I'll...explain...it later."

"Jason-san," Kenshin said, leaning over him. "You should rest."

"No," Jason said. "She might die. I want...to be awake...if she does."

"Why?"

Jason felt a small smile come to his face. "Told you...I'd tell you...later."

Kenshin scowled. "You sound like my old master."

"Bet...I'd like him," Jason said. Kenshin's scowl just deepened...or at least he thought that was what the blurry movement was. He couldn't help but smile at the thought as they sat there in the darkness of the ruined shrine.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Apparently I have some friends who have felt that I've been taking advantage of them by using them as sounding boards for ideas and I never give them credit. Know that I have some great friends who will let me go off and then give me ideas when I'm stuck, and I'd like to thank them. I'd also like to thank Chibivampire1313 and Daricio for helping me beta this chapter. You guys all rock! *hug* And thank you to my reviewers too! *hint hint, nudge nudge*


	8. Invitation

It took Kenshin a few minutes to find Jason and the old woman a flat place to lay and rest inside of what was left of the ruined building (he counted them all lucky that this shrine was fairly large). Neither the woman or Jason were a problem for the smaller boy to move (or help, in Jason's case, and he would deny anything else to the end). After that he disappeared for a while but returned with cloth of some sort to cover and keep them warm. Kenshin made no small secret of his disapproval of Jason's refusal to sleep, but that didn't faze the ex-assassin much. For one thing, he could still hear the alien and the Doctor in his mind. They were faint (very, very faint) but still there, and because of that alone he doubted he could sleep even if he wanted to.

The Doctor kept yelling, almost pleading with the alien to rethink her decision, but she refused to respond. Even with the inhibitor on Jason continued to receive a sense of sadness, finality and contentment underlined with a touch of surprise from the large creature. He had the feeling that the strange alien didn't really know what to make of such a…composed feeling.

He didn't give up; the Doctor. Jason wasn't sure what it was, but he knew that somehow the dark-haired man got back to the TARDIS and took off after her.

He didn't make it. The Alien seemed rather resilient to outer space once she reached that altitude, despite her claim, which was probably why the Doctor managed to get up into the atmosphere before she died. He tried. He did, but he undoubtedly felt much more strongly than Jason the cold slowly seeping through her body via the wound Kenshin had given her.

It felt almost anti-climactic when the alien's life force simply faded outjust after the Doctor reached her. The last thing Jason got from the Doctor was another wave of a sad frustration before he could no longer feel either one in his mind.

For a few moments he felt empty without either alien in his head. He wasn't sure why that depressed him. The Doctor had hardly been in there and she'd been a harsh, cruel creature (even if she hadn't necessarily been trying to be) that fed off of and killed humans. She'd been feeding off of him. He couldn't even stand right now because of her. She would have killed him eventually; probably sooner than later.

So why did he feel so much regret?

He looked over at Kenshin sitting against one of the still standing walls, sword propped up against his shoulder as he watched both Jason and the old woman. His face had reverted back to a blank state, and his now amber eyes shone eerily in the darkness. Either Jason was too tired to read the emotion in those eyes, or Kenshin had masked his feelings too well. Maybe it was a combination of both.

Finally, as he watched the teenager, he drifted off to a dreamless sleep.

xXx

It had been hours since the Doctor had left. Sometime during the second hour Jason-san finally fell asleep.

Kenshin didn't.

Not only did he have to watch over both of the injured, but he had far too much on his mind. Kenshin had to admit, he felt like he'd gotten in way over his head. Well, he'd known that before, but just how deeply he'd gone hadn't really hit him until now. He'd realized something else earlier that day too, and it had finally sunk in. He had done something he thought he'd never do again, especially in such a short time; he'd become attached.

During the height of the Bakumatsu, fully trusting someone could be deadly. As such, he'd never really trusted anyone except Tomoe (he forced his thoughts away from that train of thought the moment it came to mind) and maybe Katsura Kogoro-sama. Maybe the traitor too, but that still irked him.

Before that, he'd trusted only Hiko Sejiro. Yes, his history of trusting had turned out fabulously; completely estranged, wandering on his own, practically running from…well, everything.

He should leave. That thought had always tickled the back of his mind, keeping him on his toes and moving, but now it ran through his consciousness like a madman. With a sword…and a gun. It practically yelled at him to keep moving or it would all catch up with him. Leaving was the smartest choice, he knew, and he should do so before he became even more attached. Yes. Yes, that would work the best.

And yet, his feet wouldn't move. First of all, Jason-san and the old woman had been entrusted to him. He may be many horrible things, but he did not abandon his duty. Then there was the problem of his eyes. Oh yes, his eyes. He did not want to be a demon, that he did not.

He sighed and clutched his sword closer to him. The only person who seemed to be able to do anything for his new, strange condition was the Doctor. So either he remained and put these two men in even more danger than they were apparently already in, or he could live out the rest of his life as a demon.

Like it or not, he had the distinct feeling that he was stuck between a rock and a hard place. Stuck here with two men who also hated to kill, but had been forced to do so by circumstance. Vaguely he wondered what the almost naïve Doctor could have possibly done that could be so horrible. He had no doubt Jason-san was right in his assertion of the human-like alien, but it was still hard to see that man as a killer.

Maybe that was the point.

Kenshin sat in the darkness next to the window, the moonlight catching only the hilt of his sword as it streamed through. It would be dawn soon. They'd have to take the old woman and Jason-san to the healer in town. They couldn't just stay here.

The Doctor didn't come back that night. Kenshin didn't move until the sun had almost reached its peak. That was when the old woman began to stir. A little surprised, Kenshin went to her side immediately.

She pushed her older body up with some effort and put a hand to her head as she looked around. Her eyes immediately went to Kenshin who knelt, looking at her intently.

Upon seeing him, she gasped and jumped back, covering her hand with her mouth.

"Are you alright?" he asked as gently as he could.

"Y-youkai," she whispered.

"It has gone," Kenshin said, glancing away. He didn't like the way she looked at him. Her tone of voice gave him a strong suspicion that when she'd said "youkai", she didn't mean the alien. Of course, having Japanese features under red hair and then the now yellow eyes…

He held in a depressed sigh, knowing he really couldn't blame her.

"I-I must warn the village," the woman said as she tried to unsteadily gain her feet. "The youkai have started to show themselves!"

"You can inform them," Kenshin said softly, "that the problem has been dealt with. "

"W-what do you mean?" She stuttered, trying to sound strong and composed.

"I mean," he touched his sword, shooting her a pointed look that unintentionally made her flinch, "the situation has been handled."

"I-I see," the priestess said. "I will be off then. I thank you for your help." She bowed hesitantly before hurrying off as quickly as she could. Kenshin watched her go for a few moments, then looked over at Jason-san's still form. He felt positive that the ex-assassin would be alright. Now would be the perfect time to leave…

But instead, he walked over and sat down near the wall, leaned his sword back against his shoulder, and waited.

xXx

The late afternoon light had cast a golden hue on the world outside the broken temple. Kenshin continued to watch Jason-san's slowly rising and falling chest. How often did an assassin get to sleep so deeply except when healing? Kenshin almost envied him. Almost.

That's when the Doctor came strolling in, looking as happy and fresh as ever.

"Hello," he said in his strangely accented voice.

Kenshin simply looked up, watching him almost incredulously. He was sure the man would come back a wreck. Did he really have a heart of steel underneath all of that pretense, or did he somehow just get over occurrences quickly? If it were the latter, Kenshin envied him.

The Doctor had not come more than a few feet into the room before he stopped and looked around. "Where is she?" He asked.

"The woman?" Kenshin responded with clipped words. "She went to warn the town of youkai."

"Well we've taken care of that," the Doctor said, his voice all too happy.

"I informed her of that, but I don't believe she meant the creature," Kenshin all but muttered.

"Oh for...I _told_ you," the Doctor rolled his eyes (and his head), "you're fine. You simply absorbed some of the enzymes from the alien. It should wear off eventually."

Kenshin tried not to get his hopes up at the Doctor's statement. It sounded far too much like the man had just come up with an explanation to comfort him.

"You are not sure of this," he stated, meeting the Doctor's eyes.

"Yes I am."

Kenshin continued to stare, unimpressed.

It worked. "But just in case I'm not, would you like to come with me?"

"Come with you?" The former hitokiri blinked, having the distinct feeling that he'd just missed something and the even more blatant feeling that he probably couldn't really grasp what he'd supposedly missed, but probably should. The thought hurt his head.

"Yeah," the Doctor smiled.

"To different worlds?" the very thought boggled his mind. He'd only just really grasped the concept of _this_ world.

"Not just different worlds," the Doctor squatted in front of him. "Different times. "

That one totally blew Kenshin away. "I don't understand."

"The past; the future; I can take you back before the world was ever created, or forward to the end of the universe…well," he paused as if remembering something unpleasant, "not that far. But close."

Kenshin tried to listen, but his mind caught up on the Doctor's words. ' _The past_ ,' he'd said.

"We can go to the past?" he asked, for once letting his mask of indifference drop completely and not caring how intent or hopeful he looked.

"Well, not your past."

The red-head narrowed his eyes at the Doctor. "Why not?"

The Doctor sighed. "I can't take you into your own past. It's…against the rules."

"What rules?"

"The rules of the Time Lords."

"Who?"

The Doctor stood up, looking none too pleased. "My people."

"The ones who died?" Kenshin asked, unable to stop himself.

The dark-haired man scowled. "Yes."

Kenshin felt more than a little bit of a sting in that. "So you uphold their memories by honoring their rules," he said quietly, looking down. Apparently the Doctor had not been expecting that, or what Kenshin said next. "Very well, Doctor-san. If you wish, I shall accompany you, but not to my past."

The Doctor's grin split his face almost instantly. "Brilliant. Oh, but it's just 'Doctor', no 'san'."

Keshin nodded thoughtfully, his eyes on the other assassin lying on the floor. "And what about Jason-san?"

"Oh, David?" The Doctor turned and looked down at the sleeping man. "I think I'll extend the same invitation to him as well."

A smile brushed Kenshin's lips. He'd been hoping for that. He rather liked the other man and felt a kinship towards him he doubted he would find in anyone else. "I thought you would take him home," he commented.

The Doctor shrugged. "Well, I think he's proved himself."

Kenshin watched the sleeping form for another minute before looking up at the Doctor again. "If I may ask, why do you call him 'David'?"

The Doctor walked over to the American's sleeping form, taking out his glowing screwdriver. "Oh, that was his name before his…you know…job." Understanding swept through Kenshin's yellow eyes as the Doctor began to wave the screwdriver over Jason's face, lifting up his eyelids and peering in.

"How is he?" Kenshin asked.

"Probably really hungry," the Doctor said. "And he's been sleeping long enough, I think." He held up the screwdriver and flipped several little switches on the side, causing the frequency of the sound it made to change several times before he seemed satisfied. Then he held the screwdriver over Jason's head, and began moving it back and forth in a slow, measured motion. To Kenshin's amazement, not moments later the ex-assassin began to stir.

He didn't wake up as he normally did; fully awake in moments. Instead, he opened his eyes slowly and looked around blearily.

"Hello," the Doctor smiled.

Jason blinked, not seeming to recognize either of the two before him. At first he looked slightly panicked, but then he apparently remembered everything because his face fell, looking suddenly morose.

"How can you be so happy, Doctor?" he asked, quietly. To Kenshin's confusion, the Doctor's smile widened. It also seemed suddenly genuine. Kenshin found himself surprised that he hadn't noticed how forced it had been only seconds before. Could that be because the Doctor had been forcing that smile the whole time? Was this the first time he'd seen a real smile from the alien?

"What?" Jason-san asked, noting the smile himself. Kenshin agreed with the sentiment.

"Kenshin and I are going to go visit the Emerald Mountains of Forlikatropif. You could, you know, come."

Jason-san blinked at him for a moment. "I thought you were going to take me back."

"Yeah, well I changed my mind."

"You trust me?" The Doctor didn't answer, but Jason-san suddenly shared the Doctor's genuine smile, and Kenshin once again felt like he'd missed something. "If I have a choice between bullets or mountains, I'll take the mountains."

"Bullets?" Kenshin asked, probably a little louder than he meant to.

The Doctor and Jason-san looked up at him. "Oh, we left his time a little fast," the Doctor said. Jason-san rolled his eyes.

"Wait," Kenshin asked, suddenly realizing for the first time and kicking himself for not doing so earlier. "You are also not from this time? You are from…the future?" He tried not to sound confused, but from the looks on their faces, he doubted he'd succeeded. He'd have to work harder on his mask if it had begun to slip as often and as far as it had begun to in the last few days.

"Good for you," The Doctor smiled. "How did you end up where you did when you have a mind like that?"

Kenshin blinked at the compliment, unsure of how to respond. His teacher had always called him gifted, but stupid. No one during the Bakumatsu had ever dared call him anything. Most of them didn't even dare get to know him. No one had ever called him…smart.

"War," Jason muttered darkly. "Does that to countries."

The Doctor conceded the point with a quick cock of his head.

"Alright, gentleman," he said, grinning as he began to walk backwards, somehow avoiding all of the rubble. "Are you coming?"

"I can't even stand up," Jason muttered, then noticed the hand in front of his face and looked up to see Kenshin standing there, arm extended.

"Kenshin," he said as he looked up at the teen. "Your eyes…they're blue again."

He couldn't stop the feeling of utter relief at the man's words. His reaction must have shown on his face because Jason-san did something he probably hadn't done in a very long time: He chuckled. It was a deep, genuine chuckle that Kenshin suspected had not left him in a very long time.

Before Kenshin's thoughts could take him any further, Jason-san grabbed Kenshin's hand and used him as leverage to help himself stand. Then, with one arm thrown over the former hitokiri's shoulder, they both stumbled out the door after the Doctor.

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Again, I'd like to thank my friends who put up with me going over and over this with them, and my beta reader chibivampire1313!
> 
> Stay tuned for the epilogue! It's personally, my favorite part... (evil grin here)


	9. Epilogue

Jason watched the Doctor as he rushed excitedly around the center console of the TARDIS, pressing buttons and going on about how the grass on the mountains they'd be visiting had real emeralds that grew into them because the soil was so rich with the gems, but it shouldn't be physically possible because of some sort of biological fact. Then he went of on a tangent about some sort of food…at least Jason thought it was a food as he'd never really heard the name before. Kenshin just kept staring at the Doctor, blinking, probably only barely keeping up.

Allowing himself to smile, Jason stretched. He still felt weak, but at least he was standing on his own again. The Doctor had apparently already taken the boy they'd found in the cave earlier back to town. He'd make a full recovery, as would Jason and supposedly Kenshin.

Suddenly a shudder ran through the ship, throwing Jason to the ground and causing the other two to grab onto the nearest stable object. The glass tubes in the center of the ship moved up and down with the high-pitched, rather unique (and very grating) sound that Jason doubted he'd ever forget, and then it stopped.

"Alright, Kenshin," the Doctor looked over at him then shot a look around. "Where's David?"

"Shut up," Jason muttered as he pushed himself to his feet. "And don't call me that."

"Then come up with a name."

"Whatever," Jason growled.

The Doctor turned towards them, full of anticipation and beaming through a huge smile that stretched across his face. "David, Kenshin, how would you like to see the world?"

"What?" Kenshin asked.

"Really?" Jason's eyes widened.

"Go to the door," the Doctor said, gesturing with his head. That stupid smile never disappeared.

Jason and Kenshin exchanged glances. Jason moved toward the door, but Kenshin was faster. He reached the double doors, pulled them open and jumped back with a startled yelp.

"It is true," he muttered as Jason moved to stand next to him. Then the kid's mask fell away completely and Jason saw for the first time the utter wonder of a child on the boy's face as he looked over and saw the world from an astronaut's point of view; a blue and green jewel backed by a black backdrop and a sea of stars stretched out before them and Jason felt his own breath leave him at the absolute beauty of the rare sight.

"This…this is Earth? This is how it looks from the viewpoint of the stars?"

Jason shook his head. "Kid," he said, not taking his eyes off of the sight himself, "we've got a lot to teach you."

"Yes, I can see that," Kenshin said, his words sounding extremely humble.

"So what do you two think?" the Doctor asked, coming up behind them.

Kenshin and Jason both found themselves speechless. Everything that they'd already said seemed to be everything they could think of at the moment.

Finally, Jason's mind began to work and he couldn't help but grin himself. They were in space. Outer space. Above the Earth. In an alien spaceship.

"How can we breathe?" Jason asked suddenly.

"Breathe?" Kenshin asked.

"The TARDIS is protecting us."

"Why would we not be able to breathe?"

Jason glanced over at the redhead for a moment. "You can't breathe in space."

"Oh."

"And how should he know that?" The Doctor asked.

Jason shrugged and went back to looking at the Earth.

"This TARDIS," Kenshin remarked, "You speak of it as if it lives."

"She does," the Doctor said, sounding slightly insulted. "This is my TARDIS, and she's every bit alive as you are."

Kenshin didn't respond as he blinked up at the Doctor. After a few moments, he turned to look back out on the world, obviously overwhelmed.

"I…don't understand," he said.

"That's okay," Jason said. "I thought I did, but now I don't think I do."

Behind them, the Doctor smiled. "Well, we have time. All the time in the universe."

They continued to stare out of the door to the TARDIS for a few more seconds before the Doctor suddenly ran back to the center of the room.

"Speaking of," he said, "who's up for those Emerald Mountains?"

Kenshin didn't take his eyes off of the world outside, seeming to struggle to take everything in. Jason smiled at him. He liked the idea of the kid finally finding something that could take down that stupid mask he'd been wearing.

"Emerald Mountains," he said, looking back over his shoulder. "Sure. Why not."

"Excellent!" The Doctor grinned. "Close the doors! Let's get going!"

That seemed to snap Kenshin out of a trance. He nodded and reached back to close the door on his side as Jason did the same. He still looked a little overcome.

"Hey," Jason said to him. "You'll get it, don't worry."

"I don't know, Jason-san," he said, then turned his eyes up to look at the fellow assassin. "It's just so—what?" He must have noticed the look on Jason's face, because he cut himself off.

"Your eyes…" he said.

"Oh, the color? No problem. It'll wear off." The Doctor said, only sparing a glance at them before going back to rushing around and pressing buttons again.

"Just a few minutes ago, they were blue."

The Doctor looked up from his control console. "Really?"

Just then the ship lurched. Fortunately, Jason already had ahold of the railing, and managed to keep his feet under him. Barely.

"You guys are going to love this," the Doctor said. "And it's just us, a bunch of guys hanging out."

"You're saying it's just a road trip?" Jason asked skeptically.

The Doctor looked at him for a moment, pausing in his rushing around the console. "Yes," he nodded.

The TARDIS started shaking harder, which prompted the Doctor to go back to the control panel. For a few moments that's all that happened and Jason felt a sense of anticipation he hadn't felt since his last job. Except this time, it seemed…different. It took him a minute to figure out exactly what had changed; guilt. He didn't have the slightest bit of the guilt that had always plagued him before. Back then, he'd just shoved it to the back of his mind, but now there was nothing to shove.

He liked that feeling.

Then the ship lurched again. Hard. And kept lurching. Yet again Jason found himself on the floor.

"Is this normal?" he yelled up to the Doctor, who looked like he was having a hard time staying upright himself, clutching onto the console like his life depended on it.

"No!" he said. "Something's interfering." He reached over with some difficulty and grabbed another knob, giving it a turn. As far as Jason felt, it didn't do a thing. He glanced over at Kenshin to find him looking utterly sick and holding onto one of the bars of the railing like the world was ending. As far as the poor kid knew, it was.

Then Jason noticed something else about the boy.

"Kenshin," he yelled out, annoyed that he couldn't keep all of the panic out of his voice. "You're glowing! Why are you glowing?!"

The Doctor looked over (somehow) and confirmed that yes, Kenshin had started to glow.

His eyes had shone before, but now they resembled flashlights, easily the strongest source of light on his body, but the rest of him also emanated a golden hue.

"Doctor?" Jason yelled over to the console.

"The enzymes from the alien seeped into his skin," the Doctor explained, his voice shaking with the ship. "It's a reaction because the human body isn't supposed to absorb chemicals like that...but," he looked at the screen in front of him. "The interference...it's coming from him!"

"What?" Kenshin asked, now looking paler than ever under the glow.

"I know you're not trying to," The Doctor said, pulling himself along the center of the ship and hitting random things, pulling and turning mechanisms as he went. Whatever he did helped because the ship stopped rocking like someone had stuck them in a pin-ball machine and used them as the ball.

After a few moments, Jason tentatively pulled himself to his still unsteady feet.

"What happened?"

The Doctor stuck his hands in his pockets. "I stopped fighting it."

"Fighting what?"

"Whatever he absorbed is reacting to something. He's being drawn towards it. Because he's in the TARDIS, he's taking us with him," he nodded over to Kenshin, who had also regained his feet and now stared at his hand with a heartbroken expression. "Funny," the Doctor continued, scratching the front of his neck and gritting his teeth, "I've never seen such a strong reaction like that to anything but Huron Particles."

"What are those?"

The Doctor shrugged. "Particles that have been extinct for a several millenia."

"Doctor," Kenshin's voice sounded quiet, but the emotion behind that voice (which sounded extremely strange coming from someone who usually masked their emotions so well) caused a knot of worry to form in Jason's stomach. "What's happening to me?"

Jason looked away. He'd felt the way he knew Kenshin was feeling right now all too often. Scared to death and completely hopeless.

"Let's go outside."

"What?" Jason and Kenshin voiced at the same time. That had been random and it successfully diverted Kenshin's focus.

"We go outside and see what it was that attracted Kenshin, and maybe we can draw it out of him. It'll fade eventually, but if we want to travel anywhere else in time, then we have to find some way to nullify it."

Jason shook his head, showing his unease at the Doctor's suggestion. "Where are we even?"

The Doctor shrugged. "No clue."

"Wait," Kenshin said slowly, "you want to just walk outside, into an unknown situation—possibly hostile—for no other reason than to see what it is that brought us here?"

Silence fell over the group for a second as the Doctor contemplated that.

"Yeah," he said finally, large grin once again splitting his face.

"You can't be serious," Jason said. The very thought went against every single survival instinct he had inside his body.

The Doctor leaned forward onto the railing locking his elbows as he stared at the two men. "Why did you come along? It wasn't just to sit on this ship and hide from the universe, right?"

"Can't you at least scan it, or something?" Jason asked, trying not to sound put-upon and suspecting he hadn't hidden it very well.

"Scan?" Kenshin cocked his head.

The Doctor shrugged. "Sure, but where's the fun in that?" Then, before either one could stop him, he bounded past them, down the ramp and flung open the doors. They'd just left an orbit around the Earth; a darkness from Space broken only by stars glimmering in the background and the moon off to the side in the distance.

He opened the doors onto a desert. A large, flat expanse, broken only by a few rolling hills and some random cliffs here and there. The wind wasn't blowing too hard, but sand seemed to roll everywhere anyway, and Jason could already feel the heat from the sun.

"Well," the Doctor grinned, "this looks promising."

Kenshin had his hand on his sword, and Jason would be lying if he said he hadn't reached for his gun. They both stood there, braced for a fight as the Doctor surveyed the scene. then he glanced back over his shoulder and frowned at them.

"What's with you two?" the alien asked, then strode outside. Reluctantly, the other two followed.

"It feels strange, here," Kenshin muttered the moment he followed the Doctor out of the door.

The Doctor turned around. "Oh, that's the five moons in orbit around the planet. Have a gravitational pull that will take you two a while to get used to. Oh, and there are two suns. That has something to do with it." Jason followed Kenshin and immediately felt some strange pull that turned his stomach into even more knots.

"How can you tell there are five moons?" Jason asked. "I can only see two."

"I just...can," the Doctor said, walking further out and turning around, surveying the landscape. He stopped when he faced the TARDIS, looking behind it. "Oh, hello."

Jason and Kenshin both peered around the TARDIS to see a town settled next to some cliffs not a mile away. Now that he looked hard, Jason could see that they'd landed right by a road or path of some sort that lead into said town.

"I have never seen such a desolate settlement," Kenshin pointed out, matter-of-factly. Jason had to agree that it did look kind of hopeless. Like ruins in Nevada, except a little more western. Maybe more like a ghost town then? Except there were people running around.

Then, just before their eyes, a gush of water shot up in the middle of town. Kenshin and Jason stepped from behind the side of the TARDIS to get a better look, surprise plain on their faces. The cheers of a crowd meandered over the dunes, reaching them.

"Hello," the Doctor said again, his voice all too cheery.

"Hello!" A new voice answered. Kenshin and Jason whirled around, both ready for a fight again.

"Will you two calm down?" The Doctor shot, rolling his eyes. A man, dressed all in what looked like dark brown leather armor stood in the road grinning over at them. He had bright blue eyes and he carried a over one shoulder. Jason knew immediately that this man was not someone to take lightly. He had an air about him that screamed 'dangerous'. His blond hair stood up straight, like he'd done it up with gel, but also had a sort of mussy quality, like he'd just gotten out of a fight and he could see some scratches and what may be burns as well.

"Jason-san," Kenshin muttered, "I smell blood."

Jason nodded.

"So," The Doctor grinned. "I'm the Doctor. This is Kenshin and David."

"Jason," Jason corrected immediately.

The Doctor scowled at him for a moment, but turned back to the newcomer, beaming. "Who are you?"

"Me?" The blond guy pointed to himself, then grinned. "Um..."

"And why aren't you panicking about the bleeding man on your shoulder?" Jason asked.

The man eyed him for a moment, his face falling slightly. "This is my brother. He'll be alright until I get back to town. I've taken care of that."

"Why do you not wish to make him more comfortable as soon as possible?" Kenshin asked. "In my experience, when a comrade is wounded, that is the best reaction."

The guy rubbed the back of his head. "Well, you see, I'm kind of nervous to go back to town. They don't really care for me there."

"Why not?" The Doctor asked, sounding genuinely curious.

"Well, I kind of have a reputation for destroying things."

Kenshin's look darkened. "Who are you? We told you our names. It is only polite to reveal yours."

The man watched Kenshin for a minute, then sighed. "You're right," he held his hand out to the Doctor. "This is my brother Knives. My name's Vash. Nice to meet you."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> And there you have it! :D Woot! Well, no where near as many readers as I have on some of my other fics, but eh. I enjoyed it. :D Do you have any idea how long it's been since I finished a story? Oh gosh, it has to be since I wrote Weakness (Danny Phantom). That had to be two years ago...sheesh! Well, let's hope this starts a streak! :D
> 
> Again, I'd like to thank my friends who put up with me going over and over this with them, and my beta reader chibivampire1313!
> 
> A friend of mine is doing commissions, so I got one from her, and this is the incredible result! Please check it out!
> 
> obi-quiet.deviantart.com/favourites/#/d35tj28


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